


Another Day in Hell

by KeiChanz



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Blood and Violence, Drama, Eventual Smut, Explicit Language, F/M, Gun Violence, MirSan, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Romance, Some Humor, Zombies, inukag - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-11
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2020-08-18 20:35:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20197765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KeiChanz/pseuds/KeiChanz
Summary: The undead and monsters both of the bestial and human variety wander the streets looking for their next kill. To trust blindly could very well mean your death so it’s easier to not trust anybody at all even when they claim all they want to do is help. The smartest thing to do was to look out for number one, question everything, and always, always watch your back. Evil lurked around every corner, hid in every brush, and nowhere was safe anymore.





	1. Chapter 1

You know that phrase, “Just another day in paradise?”

Well, the same thing could be said now for one Kagome Higurashi. There was just one small difference, however, because Kagome sure as shit wouldn’t call this paradise. 

The undead and monsters both of the bestial and human variety wandered the streets looking for their next kill. To trust blindly could very well mean your death so it’s easier to not trust anybody at all even when they claim all they want to do is help. The smartest thing to do was to look out for number one, question everything, and always,_ always_ watch your back. Evil lurked around every corner, hid in every brush, and nowhere was safe anymore. 

No, definitely not paradise. Because _this_ was just another typical day in goddamn_ hell_. 

Careening through the desolated streets, dodging rotting trash, abandoned cars, half-eaten carcasses, and dead bodies, a lone figure bit back a desperate sob as she looked over her shoulder with wide, terrified eyes. Covered in blood, some of it hers, some of it not, pale, and shaking, Kagome looked for a place to hide, her exhausted body starting to slow down from all the sleepless nights and lack of proper nourishment. She was cold, hungry, in pain, and she knew she wouldn’t be able to go on for much further.

She could hear them behind her now, snarling, groaning, growling and the sounds forced her to keep moving as tears ran unchecked down her face. She was being tracked, hunted by more than just the rotting undead, remembering with a terrified whimper the manic, inhuman eyes glittering malevolently down at her and the flash of cold, bloody steel as the knife plunged for her neck. She’d narrowly escaped with her life, fleeing from the crazed man she’d been stupid enough to trust and now he was after her and she knew he wasn’t going to rest until she was dead. There had been a loud bang followed by searing, burning pain in her left shoulder but she’d forced herself to ignore it, gritting her teeth and not stopping.

It was while she was escaping that she’d grabbed the attention of the undead currently giving pursuit, relentless, driven mad with hunger, thoughtless and determined and unstoppable.

Desperate, knowing that screaming for help would be useless, Kagome dove for one of the abandoned shops lining the streets, hands yanking at the door but of course _of course_ it was locked. She let loose a sob and sparing a quick look over her shoulder with wide, frightened brown eyes, Kagome darted into the dark alley beside the shop, hoping for another way in, another doorway, a broken window, _anything_.

What she found instead was a heap of scrap metal leaning against the wall and knowing she was out of time, without hesitation squirmed her way behind it, ignoring the cuts she got from the sharp edges as she crouched down low and held her breath, shaking, eyes squeezed tightly shut, praying the monsters would keep on going.

Mercifully they did and Kagome withheld a sob of relief, clamping her hands over her mouth as she took a moment to just _breathe_. She didn’t stay long though, because lingering in any place for too long was never a good idea. So not quite recovered but left without a choice, Kagome slipped from behind her cover and carefully peeked out from the alley—

Only to come face to face with another monster, amber eyes cold and piercing, the huge sword in his hand dripping with fresh blood, and Kagome didn’t give herself time to think.

Emitting a short shriek she ran, thinking that the undead must have drawn his attention and he’d come out of his bloody hidey-hole to investigate, no doubt looking for his next victim. She heard him curse, heard his hoarse shout for her to come back but of course she ignored him, pumping her legs, breathing hard, sobbing when she detected his heavy footsteps behind her.

And really she should have realized that with the racket they were making it would once more attract unwanted attention so when she spotted the same horde of rotting bodies stumbling their way toward her, snarling and falling over themselves in their haste, Kagome really shouldn’t have been surprised.

She stopped short, trapped, the undead before her, the murdering swordsman behind her, and with a desperate sound she dove to the right, toward a sedan that miraculously still had its windows intact. She locked herself inside even though she knew it was fruitless, it wasn’t going to do her a bit of good and cowering on the floor, curled into a ball with her arms wrapped around her head, she waited.

What she heard instead of the car door being ripped off its hinges was a loud curse, excited sounds of the undead as they targeted their next meal, and then vague sounds of a fight. Grunting, snarling, low growls and wet squelching sounds were all she could hear for the next few minutes and even when all went silent she didn’t dare move, shaking, eyes shut tight, jaw clenched, waiting.

Waiting. Waiting.

A knock on the car window had her jumping in alarm but she shook her head, hunching in on herself. “Go away!” she screamed, her breath hitching in her throat, heart hammering wildly in her chest.

She heard a growl and more insistent knocking--or more like banging, really. “Open up, you wanna fuckin’ die in there?”

“_Fuck off!”_

With a screech, Kagome moved, unlocking the door and then shoving it open so hard the killer on the other side grunted and stumbled back from the force. She didn’t revel in the brief victory and instead made another run for it, sobbing as she ran away as fast as she could, demanding her tired body to _keep moving, dammit._

_Please please please please plea—_

She screamed when a familiar figure suddenly dropped in front of her and Kagome made the horrifying realization that the man wasn’t human. She looked at him now with wide eyes, spotting the dog ears on his head, the sharp talons tipping each finger, and the fangs that were clearly displayed in a dangerous and...annoyed? snarl.

“Dammit bitch, I’m trying to—”

“No!” Kagome shrieked and swung her fist, landing a blow to his stomach, but the guy hardly even flinched. Tears running down her face, Kagome did the only thing she could, punching him with all that she had, kicking his legs but when a large hand suddenly clamped down on her wrist in a vice like grip, Kagome wailed.

“Wench! Fucking _listen_ to me, I’m not gonna—!”

“Please,” Kagome begged, yanking fruitlessly at her hand, shaking her head while her free hand banging uselessly against his chest. “Please, let me go, I don’t wanna die, I don’t—”

“Fuck’s sake, woman, you’re—”

He suddenly cut off and Kagome went limp, knowing this was it, she was going to die, and there wasn’t a damn thing she could do. She slumped against him, waiting for the inevitable to happen, wondering if he’d use that huge sword or the claws stained with blood.

She heard a low, thundering growl, felt it in the hard chest she lay against, and she tensed. But then he cursed - again - and muttered, “Fuck it, we don’t have time for this,” and she frowned. What—?

A strong arm wrapped around her waist and Kagome was abruptly lifted off her feet and promptly thrown over a broad shoulder. She gasped, eyes going wide and instinctively she fisted the material of his shirt at his back.

“What are you doing?!” she screeched. “Let me—!”

“Shut _up_,” he bit out as he started stalking back toward the shop where she’d tried to take shelter earlier. “Do you wanna alert every fucking undead asshole—fuck, you already did. _Dammit_.”

Before Kagome could utter another word, she was hauled back down, her would-be executioner darted into a familiar alley and he was crushing her against him, pressing her face into his chest to prevent any sounds from escaping as his arm went around her waist, a steel band.

“Don’t. Fucking. Move,” he hissed in her ear and Kagome stiffened, eyes wide as another hoard of undead stumbled down the street, perilously close to their hiding spot. She couldn’t see them but she could hear them, groaning as they dragged themselves along the blood-stained pavement, searching for flesh, creepy clicking and grunting noises echoing as they communicated with each other.

A small eternity passed as they waited for the undead to pass them by, frozen against the wall, unwilling to move even after the noises had faded away to silence. Another five minutes passed before the man dared to move, his grip loosening slightly as he sniffed the air a few times and grunted.

“They’re gone,” he rumbled and without warning swept her up into his arms. Amber eyes collided with dark brown and Kagome gasped at the intensity in them, for some reason feeling her face heat in a blush. “Keep your mouth _shut_, wench. I fucking mean it.”

Before she could respond - like she had even been able to anyway - he scowled and then abruptly launched them into the air. She bit her lip to stifle her startled cry and instead clung to him, her thoughts a jumbled mess, wondering for the first time if this man meant to kill her or save her. What was happening?

The guy was fast, not taking any chances in being detected by undead or other as he darted across the rooftop he landed on and swiftly dropped into an opening in the roof–a door, she realized somewhat dazedly. 

It was dark inside but the storefront windows provided a little light as he gruffly instructed her to close the door using a crude pulley system he’d no doubt manufactured himself. Wordlessly she did, a little impressed, and then afterward he was maneuvering through the darkness of the store, being cautious and ducking behind shelves nearly picked clean of all their merchandise. 

Kagome was quiet, biting her lip as she foolishly allowed this stranger to carry her into the depths of the store, pushing through the doors marked “Employees Only” into the storage room. He bypassed pallets of shrink-wrapped food and other supplies and hunger gnawed at Kagome’s stomach, but she ignored it, fearing that if she spoke up the man would react negatively after he’d told her plainly to keep her mouth shut.

She had no idea if he was friend or foe but figured it was out of her hands now either way so she did as she was told, biting her lip to quell any questions as he made a sharp turn toward the back and headed for yet another trapdoor-looking opening in the floor.

Kagome blinked. Stores had basements?

Evidently this one did, she mused as the man dropped down and this time Kagome shut the door without prompting, spotting the simple chain drilled into the underside and tugging until it was sealed above them. Pitch black surrounded her and she could see nothing. It was cold and smelled a bit like mildew but still she said nothing as he moved forward, the darkness hardly a hindrance to him and Kagome secretly marveled at that fact.

He suddenly stopped and then Kagome was blinking against the harsh glare of bright florescent lights as he flipped them on. After her vision cleared, Kagome took in her surroundings, her eyebrows rising and her mouth parting slightly in wonder.

She hadn’t really known what to expect, but it certainly hadn’t been an efficient and clean looking hideaway. Amidst the hot water tank, the plumbing system snaking across the ceiling, and a large metal box that looked to be some sort of electrical system, he had made himself a little home, complete with a bed compiled of stacked wooden pallets and a thick mattress with clean blankets and pillows.

She spotted a radio on a sturdy looking table with three chairs surrounding it, a bookshelf filled with non-perishable food, and a freezer chest beside it that she suspected was filled with frozen meats and meals. There was an old television but she doubted it worked, a beat-up washing machine that acted as a cooler from what she could see, and a very old, puke-green armchair that had seen better days. A mini fridge sat against the wall with a timeworn microwave on top and beside that what appeared to be one of those old fashioned water pumps protruded from the wall, situated over a drain in the cement floor.

Kagome was impressed, and okay, yeah, a little envious. It was safe, secret, and protected, hidden from the outside world. It was a slice of paradise in a world gone to hell, a safe haven from death and disease with enough food and supplies to last for a very along time.

The man grunted, disrupting her thoughts, and crossed the floor to set her carefully down on the bed.

“Don’t move,” he rumbled her eyes followed him as he wandered over to a large chest she hadn’t noticed before, opened it up to retrieve a small bin, and came back over. He set the translucent green container beside her and Kagome received her second surprise to find it filled with various medical supplies.

Was he...going to treat her injuries? What kind of serial killer was this guy?

Or maybe...maybe he wasn’t one?

Biting her lip, Kagome refused to get her hopes up, still too frightened and wary to say anything and watched as he walked back with a cooking pot filled with water before dragging a chair in front of her, sitting down and carefully setting the water on the floor at his feet.

Wordlessly he reached for her arm and Kagome instinctively flinched back, a sound of fright echoing in her throat as her wide eyes stared at his blood covered hands. He paused, stared hard at her face for a moment with a deep frown, before taking the rag he’d gotten from somewhere, dipping it in the water and wiping off the dried blood on his claws and hands.

Kagome blinked, not expecting that.

He continued to silently clean his hands the best he could, the rag becoming a ruddy brown color and the water turning a light pink.

“You got a name?” he asked out of the blue and frowned when she jumped. He paused and studied her quietly, eyes searching the dark, terrified depths that gazed back at him.

“Relax,” he murmured. “I ain’t gonna hurt ya.”

Kagome’s lips pressed into a thin line and she ducked her head.

He rolled his eyes. “If I wanted you dead, wench, don’t you think I woulda already done it? Clearly you know what I am, and yet I still saved your ass from becoming zombie food _twice_ now. You can trust me.”

She still looked uncertain, worrying her bottom lip and avoiding his gaze and he sighed. He could understand her hesitance; it was foolish to trust so blindly during these trying times, and he suspected she might have already made that mistake once which explained her wariness now. Still, he needed to treat those cuts and that nasty looking gash on her temple. Poor girl looked like she’d been through hell, and he was worried she might either pass out from sheer exhaustion or fever if any of her injuries were infected.

How the hell did he get her to trust him, though?

Racking a hand through his short hair, Inuyasha blew out his cheeks in another sigh and studied her, eyebrows dipped into a deep frown. His ear flicked, and then with slow movements, making sure she saw what he was doing, he dropped his hand to the Glock holstered at his hip and pulled it out. He’d gotten it from the dead body of a cop a week or so before and it was more for backup than anything since Tessaiga was his favored method of destruction.

Predictably she tensed, the color leeching from her face at an alarming rate but before she could bolt, Inuyasha flipped it around and held it out to her, the butt facing her.

She froze and stared wide-eyed at the firearm being offered to her for a long minute before lifting her dark eyes up to his, her shock evident. Inuyasha said nothing, silently waiting, his gaze steady and expression carefully blank.

Her eyes kept darting between him and the gun but Inuyasha remained patient, waiting for her to take the offered protection he knew would provide at least a little reassurance. Sure enough a moment later she slowly wrapped her fingers around the butt and drew the weapon into her lap, finger poised on the trigger while still avoiding his gaze, her face turning a light shade of red.

He fought a grin. It wasn’t loaded; he’d used up the last bullet just earlier that day when Tessaiga had been knocked out of his hand, but she didn’t need to know that. Then as an extra precaution, still keeping his movements slow, he jerked Tessaiga from the belt loop of his opposite hip and lowered it to the floor before lightly kicking it away, out of his reach. She relaxed visibly after that, the tension leaving her shoulders and she released a shaky breath.

Gratified, Inuyasha steeled himself and carefully reached for her arm again. She tensed, he paused, and waited a few seconds before trying again. She let him grab her arm this time and with measured movements, after wetting the rag again, he carefully began washing her skin of blood, both dried and flesh. He was glad to see that it looked worse than it really was, most of the cuts superficial and already clotting.

“My name’s Inuyasha Taisho,” he told her as he worked, voice low. “I’m thirty-one and I own the dojo across town, _Sword and Shield_.”

Surprise flickered across Kagome’s face. She recognized that name; she passed it every day on her morning commute to work. Or at least she used to.

Her eyes met his and Inuyasha’s lips twitched, his expression softening. “I’m a half-demon,” he said and her lack of surprise suggested she’d already guessed that. “But I’ve never killed another human before.”

Inuyasha paused, and then grimaced before amending, ”Uh, that hasn’t tried to kill me first.”

Her lips twitched slightly and she nodded. She understood that.

Relieved, Inuyasha worked on cleaning up her cuts and then treating them with antiseptic and bandages, muttering a soft apology when she winced as he doused the deeper ones. He did the same with her other arm, carefully cleaned and treated the gash at her temple – being sure to keep his claws away from her soft skin – and sat back.

“…Kagome.”

Inuyasha paused in studying his handiwork to flick his gaze to hers, giving her his undivided attention.

She blushed, gave him a trembling smile, and repeated softly, “Kagome Higurashi. Twenty-nine. Office worker.”

Inuyasha gave her an easy grin and he nodded once, eyes locked on hers, the vulnerability and lingering fright still clear as day. “Kagome,” he echoed, sliding his hand down her arm to grasp her hand and squeeze. “Thanks for trusting me.”

“Don’t make me regret it, please,” she whispered and relinquished the Glock back into his grasp.

“You’re safe here,” he rumbled and swiftly holstered the firearm. “I promise.”

Then she gave him her first genuine smile and something in his chest tightened as his breath caught in his throat.

Well. Fuck.

Clearing his throat and shaking his head, Inuyasha stood and went to the washer-turned-cooler filled with melting ice to get a cold bottle of water.

“When’s the last time you’ve eaten anything? Or slept?” he asked, frowning down into the well of the washer. He’d have to get more ice soon.

When he didn’t receive an answer, he looked over to find Kagome sheepishly avoiding his gaze, blushing and biting down on her lip. That didn’t exactly look encouraging.

“Um…like, three days?” she admitted with a shrug, and then immediately gasped and winced as hot pain flared in her shoulder.

Inuyasha’s frown deepened. “What’s wrong?”

“Shoulder,” she murmured, hissing through her teeth as she attempted to raise her left arm, but couldn’t move it without stabbing pain shooting down to the very tips of her fingers. She bit her lip to stifle her cry of pain.

Instantly Inuyasha was there, sitting beside her and gently nudging her to twist around so he could take a look. What he found had him sucking in a sharp breath and his eyes to go very wide.

“What?” Kagome pressed, trying to crane her neck around to see without jarring her shoulder too much. She failed. “What is it?”

“What the _fuck_,” Inuyasha growled, ears pinning into his hair. “Kagome, you’ve been _shot_.”

Kagome blanched. “W-what?” she squeaked, the disbelief clear in her voice.

“That’s a fucking _bullet _hole,” he went on and started lifting her shirt to get a better look at it. “Christ, wench, who the _hell _did you piss off to get them to _shoot _at you?”

Kagome was barely aware of him tugging her shirt up and over her shoulder as she suddenly recalled with vivid clarity a loud bang followed shortly by burning agony exploding in her left shoulder as she’d sought to escape the murderer she’d foolishly trusted.

“Oh,” she breathed, feeling lightheaded and slightly nauseous. “That’s what that was.”

“What do you _mean _that’s what—_dammit_, wench! Why didn’t you fucking tell me about this?!”

Growling, Inuyasha ended up slicing her shirt to get it off without moving her shoulder; it was already torn and bloody anyway so he didn’t think she’d mind. With hard amber eyes, Inuyasha took in the neat little dime-size hole on the back of her left shoulder. Oozing fresh blood in a steady trickle, the edges were red and inflamed and Inuyasha knew the bullet was still lodged inside. There wasn’t an exit wound on the other side of her shoulder and he could already smell the beginnings of infection from the foreign material embedded in the tissue. _Shit_.

He needed to get it out, quickly, before the infection set in and caused damage that he did not have the required medication for. He did, however, have the tools for it; he’d been shot at more than once, which was how he recognized the wound for what it was, so at least she’d have the comfort of knowing that he had experience with this sort of thing. Unfortunately he did not have any numbing agents so this was not going to be fun for her. Since he’d only ever done it to himself, figuring he’d never have to perform the “procedure” on a human, he’d never bothered to look for some since he could handle the pain.

Kagome, though? God, this was going to be a bitch for her and he hated himself for what he was about to put her through.

Swearing under his breath, Inuyasha left Kagome’s side to get clean water, a fresh roll of gauze, a mini stitches tool kit, and even though infection had already started to set in, he still grabbed the antibiotic ointment to prevent it from getting any worse. She seemed to be in a bit of shock, sitting there staring dazedly at the air in front of her and either unaware that she was topless with her white cotton bra revealed to him, or she didn’t even care. He suspected it was the former and he muttered another curse, grabbing a handful of rags he’d made from random articles of clothing before returning to where she sat.

Inuyasha set what he needed on the chair and hesitated briefly before crouching before her, hands resting lightly on her knees. Her face was pale and tightened from pain, however her eyes were surprisingly clear as she stared down at him. She worried her bottom lip, sighed, and the fleeting look that crossed her face suggested she knew what he was going to say next.

“I wish I didn’t have to say this,” he began, the regret on his face and in his voice genuine. “But I need to get it out. And I’m sure you already know, but it’s not gonna be fun. I don’t have any numbing solution, Kagome. I ain’t gonna lie to you, it’s gonna hurt like a bitch and I’m gonna need you to stay as still as possible for me so I don’t slip and accidentally cause more damage. Alright?”

If possible Kagome paled even more and she grimaced, but gave a curt nod, setting her jaw in determination and sucking in a steadying breath. She could do this.

He had to smile at her bravery. “If it makes you feel any better, I’ve done this before so I know what I’m doing. I’ll try to be quick.”

Kagome nodded again and that time offered a trembling but genuine smile. It made his heart hurt so swallowing the lump in his throat, Inuyasha stood and sank on the bed, kicking up a leg to stretch out beside her and urging her to turn so her back faced his chest and nestled comfortably between his legs. She kept her arm to her chest while doing as she was bade, shifting until both of her legs were stretching out before her and unable to hide the wince of pain when her pain flared briefly in her shoulder.

His ears flattened and clenching his jaw, Inuyasha got to work cleaning the surrounding area of dried blood and disinfecting it with some rubbing alcohol. Predictably she hissed and arched her back at the sting, instinctively trying to escape it as her hand reached down and fisted in his jeans.

“Okay?” he murmured, setting aside the antiseptic before wrapping an arm around her waist and brushing his fingers over her shoulder, readying to dig out the bullet.

Breathing deep, Kagome closed her eyes and jerked her head. “Yes,” she breathed and couldn’t stop the way her body tensed, preparing for the pain she knew was coming. “I’ll be fine. Just—get it over with. Please.”

Fuck, but he wished he didn’t have to.

“On the count of three,” he rumbled, swallowing thickly as he poised his claws above the wound. “One, two...”

Stifling the whine that welled in his throat, Inuyasha plunged his fingers into the open wound and Kagome screamed.

Burning, searing, agonizing pain exploded in her shoulder and ricocheted down her arm, sending every single nerve on fire and compressing the air in her lungs until she was gasping for breath. Tears pricked her eyes and Kagome tried very hard not to withe in agony, sobs catching in her throat as she girt her teeth and dug her fingers into his legs beside her, her body shaking, her stomach rolling, and her chest feeling impossibly tight.

Behind her Inuyasha wasn’t fairing much better, jaw clenched hard as he rooted around for the bullet and tried to pinch it between his claws, but the blood made that difficult. Switching tactics he tried to scoop it out instead, tightening his arm around her waist as she started to jerk and twist against him and he knew it was an unconscious bid to escape the pain.

“I know, baby, I know,” he soothed her as she cried, wanting nothing more than to heed her pleas for him to stop but knowing he couldn’t until the damned bullet was out. “You’re doing great, Kagome, just a little more, hold on for me, alright? You’re doing great, just a little more—”

He kept repeating the same things over and over again in her ear as he dug around for the blasted bullet, being careful not to dig his claws even more into the tissue of her shoulder but it was difficult. Kagome keened and sobbed, legs moving restlessly but the arm around her waist prevented her from jerking away from him.

Her entire arm was on fire, her shoulder felt like it was being stabbed over and over again and Kagome idly wondered if she’d ever been in as much pain before as she was right now. It was excruciating, blinding, and she almost wished she could just pass out so she wouldn’t have to endure it even a second longer—

“Got it.”

Inuyasha crooked his fingers, jerked his hand and the bullet popped out of her shoulder, glistening with blood and landing on the floor with a soft clink.

With a sob of relief Kagome went limp against him, curling her knees up as she turned her head and buried her face into his chest as she cried.

Though he wanted nothing more than to hold her, the tiny tremors that rocked her frame and the muffled whimpers against his chest tugging at his heart, Inuyasha forced himself to stay focused on the task at hand. Hurriedly he reached over and wet a rag before cleaning the wound. Though he felt like he was going to be sick, Inuyasha prepared the needle, making sure it was thoroughly disinfected and then giving a soft word of warning, he speared the flesh around it and stitched the wound closed.

Kagome jerked and issued another low moan of pain, her body stiffening but she offered no other protests, knowing it was necessary. At least he seemed to know what he was doing, his movements sure and swift. Kagome was surprised, but grateful when only seven minutes later he announced he was finished and then he was spreading the antibacterial ointment over it, staunching some of the blood flow. He wasted no time in pressing a thick gauze pad to it and keeping it secured with medical tape.

He remained quiet as he dressed the wound, and though he wanted to ask if she was okay, he had a feeling she would scoff in the face of his concern since she clearly was not. Still, the need to distract her even a little bit from the pain was urgent and so he repeated his earlier question.

“So,” he rumbled and reached over to grab the roll of gauze. “How’d you get it?”

More or less composed by now, her sobs having died down to sniffles and quiet sighs, Kagome sucked in a shaky breath and sat up straight to make it a little easier for him. Her newly bandaged shoulder protested and she winced, but the pain was tolerable.

“I made a stupid mistake,” she answered, her voice hoarse. Inuyasha started wrapping the gauze over and around her shoulder and she lifted her arm the tiniest bit so he could pass it under. “I trusted the wrong person and he ended up being...not very nice.”

“Let me guess.” Inuyasha frowned and added another layer of gauze, passing the roll over, under, and around again, passing just beneath her breasts. “One of those psycho axe murderers from a bad Halloween film?”

She gave a watery laugh and nodded. “Basically. I ran when I realized what he was and narrowly missed having my head cut off. I didn’t know he had a gun too, and as I was running away I heard a loud bang and then sharp, burning pain in my shoulder. I think I was too scared to really understand what it meant, and the adrenaline probably temporarily numbed the pain, so that’s why I didn’t tell you about it. I didn’t even know I _had _it until just now.”

His frown deepened. It made sense, but he didn’t like that she’d been so frightened the pain from the bullet hadn’t even registered, hadn’t even penetrated the terror she was feeling then.

Why did that make his gut twist and make him physically ill?

“That’s why I ran from you at first, you know,” Kagome said softly, drawing him out of his thoughts. “When I saw you standing there, your sword dripping blood and looking...well, terrifying, to be honest, I thought you were another crazy and didn’t think before I ran.”

Inuyasha grimaced and shook his head, recalling what he’d done right before he discovered her in the alley. “Yeah, I can imagine how bad that must have looked. I’d just finished tussling with a few of the undead fuckers myself. Damn things had been hanging around the shop for days before I finally managed to catch ‘em off guard and slaughter the lot of ‘em. I hadn’t even gone back inside when I heard someone yankin’ at the doors, trying to get inside, and that’s when I saw another group of them pass by with that single minded focus that could only mean they found their next meal. I was about to give chase, hoping I could get to whoever it was before they did, but then I heard something, ended up finding this tiny thing looking and smelling absolutely terrified, and she ran from me before I could ask if she was alright.”

Kagome blushed and smiled sheepishly even though he couldn’t see it and ducked her head. “Then what happened?” she asked and he easily detected the teasing lilt to her voice.

Inuyasha’s lips twitched. “Then I chased after her, killed some zombies, and tried to coax this terrified creature out from a car she’d locked herself in. She nearly knocked me on my ass with the door, told me to fuck off, ran away _again _and I had to stop her before she went and got her fool ass killed.”

“What an idiot.”

He chuckled that time. “Then I carried her back to my poor excuse of a shelter, treated her wounds, and the rest, as they say, is history.”

Kagome hummed but said nothing more and Inuyasha took that cue to reluctantly remove himself from behind her and put away the supplies. She slowly swung her legs back over the edge of the bed, releasing a yawn and Inuyasha suspected she was minutes away from passing out but first he wanted to get something in her stomach. It was obvious she hadn’t had a decent meal in a while so he’d start her off with something small first lest she get sick.

Kagome was seriously considering laying down and crashing for the next day or so when Inuyasha suddenly appeared before her, holding a bottle of water and some crackers, and her stomach loudly told of its emptiness at the sight of food. She flushed but gratefully took them, choosing to ignore his knowing smirk as she uncapped the bottle and took her first drink of fresh water in three days.

“Slowly,” he murmured and she forced herself to do as much. “You’ll get sick if it’s too fast.”

While Kagome slowly but surely drained the water and nibbled on saltines, Inuyasha made himself a PB&J and pretended it was a big juicy steak as he chomped down, finishing it in four bites. He rifled around in a box of clothes and found one of his clean t-shirts for to wear since her last one was nothing but rags now.

Wordlessly he walked over and held it up. Predictably Kagome flushed, setting down her small meal so he could help her put it on. Though she was gritting her teeth the entire time, Inuyasha managed to get her arm through the sleeve with minimal difficulty and she breathed a sigh of relief when she was covered once more.

“Thank you,” Kagome whispered softly, sincerely, and Inuyasha’s expression softened.

Because the urge was too great, he reached out and tucked a strand of raven hair behind her ear, prompting her to lift her gaze to his.

“Don’t mention it,” he rumbled, quirking a grin, and dropped his hand. Before he could step away, however, a small hand darted out and grasped his shirt, keeping him there, and he frowned down at her in concern.

“S’matter?” he asked, kneeing down and brushing his fingers against her arm. “Do you need—”

Shaking her head, Kagome tugged on his shirt, cutting him off and she finally lifted her head, deep pools of chocolate brown locking with burnished amber.

“Not just for that,” she murmured and the smile she graced him with was shy, but stunning. “For...everything. For chasing after me, feeding me, for...saving me. Thank you, Inuyasha. You didn’t have to, but you did, and...”

Her throat closed up and she could say no more, but she didn’t need to. Her eyes told plainly of her gratitude and a peculiar warmth spread throughout Inuyasha’s chest as a knot developed in his throat, suddenly making it a little harder to breathe and goddamn, but she was pretty when she smiled like that.

Composing himself, Inuyasha cleared his throat and tossed her an easy grin, though his eyes were soft and his words genuine when he rumbled, “You’re welcome, Kagome. I’m glad I did.”

Her smile widened and her blush deepened. “Me, too.”

He stared into her eyes and had the insane urge to...well, he didn’t know what, but then Kagome abruptly yawned and the spell was broken.

Shaking his head, not without an amused chuckle, Inuyasha sighed and stood up going back over to the chest of medical supplies and digging around for some painkillers. The second she spotted them Kagome made a little noise of demand and made grabby motions toward them with a little pout. He grinned and shook out two for her.

“Get some sleep,” he rumbled and waited for her to knock back the Ibuprofen with the rest of the water before taking it the empty bottle and tossing it in the cracked recycling bin that served as the trash. “Honestly I’m surprised you’ve lasted this long. Three days is a long time to go without sleep for a human.”

Kagome shrugged and then immediately regretted it when her shoulder twinged in protest. She winced and mumbled, “Kinda hard to sleep when you’re trying not to get to eaten or killed.”

Inuyasha snorted. He could agree to that.

Sighing, she carefully lowered herself down onto her right side and it was like her exhaustion hit her all at once, suddenly struggling to keep her eyes open as her body melted into the mattress and her mind became hazy. Her shoulder was stiff and still hurt like a bitch, her arm didn’t feel much better, but she was easily able to ignore all of that because she was finally able to get some sleep on an actual bed, in a safe place without worry about being discovered, without the fear that she might never wake up.

She was covered with a light blanket and she sighed, losing the battle to keep her eyes open as she murmured, “N’yasha.”

“Hm?”

“Stay.” It was barely above a whisper, her voice nothing but a breathy wisp of air, but Inuyasha heard it anyway and he felt that weird tugging sensation on his heart again.

“I’ll stay,” he replied roughly and gently brushed her bangs back, his touch lingering, a feather-light caress. “Sleep, Kagome. I’ll protect you.”

Kagome smiled, sighed, and slept.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **note:** this is _not_ based on The Walking Dead. i haven’t seen the show, but i’m thinking about maybe starting to get a few ideas because i have no idea what the fuck i’m doing.
> 
> **another note:** the need for code/nicknames will be explained in the next chapter or possibly the one after.

It was a struggle, but after Kagome fell asleep, Inuyasha finally managed to tear his gaze away from her after an embarrassing amount of time – long enough that had she been aware, he was fairly confident she would had called him a creeper for it – and went about tidying the space for lack of anything better to do. Well, better than standing there like an idiot for an undetermined amount of time gawking at the slumbering woman in his bed. Not only would she call him a creeper, but he’d feel like one so that was off the list of things to do, so distracting his mind with meaningless cleaning it is.

It wasn’t very large, perhaps the size of the standard studio apartment, the walls were brick, the floor was cement, and it suited Inuyasha’s needs perfectly. Sure it was chilly more often than not, it smelled funny, and sometimes he saw a rat or two, but none of that ever bothered him and besides, it was better than nothing. And he was proud of his little shelter. He’d transformed it from a wrecked and dirty building into a safe zone, using what he had at his disposal to make his life a little easier. It was only a bonus that it had working plumbing and untouched food and supplies in the back, suggesting that he had been the only one to survive long enough to venture further in and discover it all.

He had found the place a couple months ago and claimed it as his own, eliminated all the undead inside, dragging their bodies outside in front of the shop, and making a clear statement that this particular shop was off limits. It worked for the most part; occasionally he’d get the odd demon sniffing around for shelter or a curious human searching for supplies, but he always managed to chase them off or if he had to, maim or kill. Humans that had lost their sanity and regressed into nothing short of a slaughtering madman were nearly just as rampant as the undead fuckers that walked around with a hunger for human flesh and he’d eliminated his fair share of them.

Inuyasha hadn’t lied to Kagome earlier; he really hadn’t killed another human unless they tried to kill him first. He didn’t like killing needlessly, especially when there were so few demons and humans left after the world went down the shitter and became a living hell. It was a dog eat dog world – he fucking hated that analogy if he were being honest, but it was accurate – and Inuyasha did what he had to do to survive. It was never easy, it was by no means pretty, but it was necessary and he’d accepted that long ago.

Often Inuyasha wondered that if it hadn’t been for his friends, he would have gone down a very similar path as the human murderers and allow his demon blood to overwhelm him, turning him into a bloodthirsty creature with no remorse and no mercy. It was a terrifying thought so he never dwelled on it for long, merely shaking his head and offering his silent gratitude to whoever would listen.

Stooping to grab Tessaiga up off the floor and shove it back into his belt loop, Inuyasha sighed and started collecting the trash to take to the dumping site tomorrow, tossing the bloody rags, Kagome’s ruined shirt, and plastic bags he’d filled earlier in the week with miscellaneous rubbish into the bin. He’d learned the hard way that leaving bloodied clothing and rotting food outside behind the shop attracted all kinds of creatures with a keen enough nose to smell it. After dispatching a hoard of investigating deadies for the fourth time in a single week he’d decided enough was enough and started dumping his trash into a large pit about a mile’s walk away.

Pausing, Inuyasha turned to glance at his occupied bed once more and frowned. He never minded the walk, and most of the time even preferred it, but perhaps this time it would be a smart idea to use the ATV. He kept it hidden and hardly ever used it because gas was a precious commodity, but the thought of leaving Kagome alone for any stretch of time unsettled him. He didn’t like the idea of taking her with him either, especially with a useless arm, but at least if he left her here she’d be safe and he’d only be gone for a maximum of ten minutes anyway.

Kagome sighed and shifted in her sleep, a little frown puckering her brow briefly before it smoothed out and she settled down again. Realizing he was staring, Inuyasha once more tore his gaze away and decided he should go over inventory to see what he needed.

Growling at himself, he grabbed the notebook he used to keep tabs on inventory and started with his weapons stash first. Ammo was a given and he jotted that down, for his Glock and the rifle with the scope he kept on top of the bookshelf, used for long range shooting. He still had three boxes left for his Sig so he didn’t have to worry about that. He was running low on mineral oil for Tessaiga, though, so he added that.

Food wise, he was good on non-perishables, but made a note to get bags of ice, a case of water, and after a brief pause, more ramen. Medical supplies were stocked. Flicking a glance at the haphazard box of clothes, then to Kagome, he wrote down _women’s clothes and other_. He figured she’d tell him what she needed so he didn’t bother listing any feminine products, and he was counting on Sango or Ayame maybe having a few things they could donate. He had no idea how long she’d be staying with him or even if she would – he didn’t know her story, if she’d been separated from family or what – so for now he thought it safe to assume she’d be staying for a while, which meant eventually she’d be meeting everybody after she was healed and had regained her strength.

Inuyasha grunted and scanned his list, idly tapping the pen against the notebook. Matches, lighter fluid, gasoline, firewood, and blankets he was good on, but he marked off flashlights and batteries as a critical need. He checked how much was left of the ingredients for homemade bombs – the things were _incredibly _useful when going up against massive hoards of undead – and added those to the list. He’d gotten lucky yesterday and found a bag filled with toiletries and other random items that he knew the girls would appreciate so he crossed that off his list.

Looking it over one last time, Inuyasha conceded that all in all it wasn’t that bad. The items most difficult to retrieve would no doubt be the ammo and water, but Inuyasha wasn’t afraid to play dirty if he had to. It was a kill or be killed world, and he’d be damned if he was offed by one of those undead fuckers or a mere human with a possessive streak.

“Fuck my life,” Inuyasha muttered as he dropped the notepad onto the table and wandered over to the washer-turned-cooler to grab a beer.

Alcohol was also a rare commodity, but he was lucky enough to have an entire back room full of the stuff. He wasn’t a huge drinker to begin with – getting drunk during these times was dangerous and just downright foolish – but every once in a while he didn’t mind kicking back with a cold one, take a moment to breathe and thank god that he’d survived another day.

Kagome chose that moment to make another soft sound in her sleep and Inuyasha found himself once more staring at her as she grunted before abruptly rolling onto her stomach, squirming around and wrapping her good arm around the pillow then going still.

Inuyasha stared, cursed, and then abruptly gave up, stomping over to the puke-green armchair and plopping down with a heavy sigh. Stretching his legs out and getting comfortable, he uncapped his brew, knocked back a few mouthfuls, and settled back into the worn cushion as he propped his head in his hand and crossed his booted feet at the ankles.

_Kagome... _His eyebrows dipped into a thoughtful frown as he studied her, claws idly tapping against the chilled glass of his beer. Her face, relaxed in slumber, was directed toward him and his eyes tracked her features, to her small nose, delicate jaw, and full lips. Despite looking a right mess, her hair a tangled mop on her head, dirt smudged onto her skin along with dried blood, she still managed to look beautiful to him. She was trim, physically fit, and she’d weighed hardly anything when she’d been in his arms. He recalled the deep brown of her eyes, fathomless pools of rich chocolate that glittered with an odd mix of apprehension, confusion, and relief when she gazed at him.

Taking another swig, Inuyasha wondered what she had been through before they’d met. She’d told him about the psycho with the gun, but what about before that? Where was her family? Were they even alive? Did she have any friends? Why was she alone without any means of protecting herself? How the _hell _had she survived for so long?

He had so many questions and he’d wanted to bombard her with them tonight, but after seeing how exhausted she was, nearly falling asleep sitting up, he’d decided they could wait so she could get the rest she so desperately needed. He surmised she’d sleep for a good ten hours or so, and in the meantime he should probably catch some z’s himself, but with his mind a whirlwind of activity, he doubted he’d be getting any sleep tonight.

Inuyasha had no idea why he brought her back here. Well okay, that wasn’t entirely true; while his enemies and even at times his friends had called him many less than positive names, he wasn’t a heartless bastard. He hadn’t been about to leave a helpless woman alone, obviously frightened for her life, to a hoard of hungry zombies – and possibly her psycho trigger-happy friend that gave her that hole in her shoulder – when there was something he could do about it.

But still, it had been an impulse, a last second decision, and during the single hour he’d known her he’d been wondering if he was going to regret it. Aside from the obvious of whether or not he could trust her, he’d just loaded onto himself and the others another mouth to feed, a liability because he was pretty damned sure she knew jack shit about defending herself for wielding any sort of weapon.

That could change, though. He could teach her. Show her how to hold and aim a gun, how to brace herself, even teach her a few basic self-defense moves after she was back to full health. She would be a quick learner, Inuyasha surmised. Kagome had the drive to survive, a strong enough spirit to hold her own, and a fierce determination he’d caught a few glimpses of in her eyes. So he could turn that liability into an asset, train her, show her the ropes and he knew without a doubt that she would fit right in to their merry little band of misfit fighters.

And therein lay the crux of the problem because Inuyasha didn’t _do _that shit. He didn’t train people how to fight, how to accurately protect themselves, how to hold a goddamn gun or block an attack. He may own a goddamn dojo dedicated to teaching martial arts, but that didn’t mean he taught any of the students enrolled.

He knew what the others said about him and, hell, he agreed. He was temperamental, defensive, anti-social, and his patience was notoriously limited, so training somebody like Kagome, who looked like she hadn’t roughhoused a day in her life, would not be a good idea. No, he left that up to Miroku and Sango, his instructors that worked for him. Well, used to, before the world went to hell in a hand basket.

Yeah, sure, he could have someone else do it. Inuyasha was positive he could drop her off at S and S, explain the situation, and then go about his usual business of being a temperamental grump and avoiding everyone. She’d be in good hands; Sango and Ayame would immediately bond with her since they always complained about being the only two women among their group of twelve. They were talented fighters and he trusted them wholeheartedly to have his back in a fight.

The thing was, though, while he trusted everybody impeccably in their group to have his back – and yeah, even his bastard of a half-brother – for some stupid ass reason having somebody else train and teach Kagome didn’t sit well with him. It was completely asinine, but he only trusted himself to teach her how to properly protect herself, how to punch, kick, aim, block, know when to dive in, and when to retreat.

It made no goddamn sense. He didn’t have _time _in his day to devote to training somebody, and yet the thought of anybody else doing it, getting that close to her, even if it was Sango or Ayame, had his chest tightening and a growl to well in his throat. It wasn’t a secret that Miroku’s hands wandered, and fucking Kouga thought he was god’s gift to women. The girls would spend more time gossiping than training, the runt was too young, Sesshomaru was an asshole – when he actually bothered t show up, anyway, and wasn’t off doing his own thing – and Ginta and Hakkaku were idiots.

So no, it had to be him. And besides, he’d been fighting since he was a brat and had plenty experience. Kagome would be in good hands with a competent instructor like himself, and no, that wasn’t arrogance. Damn wolfshit had enough of _that_ to cover everybody in their group ten times over. Besides, he was the one that found Kagome, so she was his responsibility. He would make sure she knew what to do during an ambush, what to look for, teach her every survival trick and tip he knew, and he’d make damn sure could protect herself.

Of course, the whole goddamn thing would be moot if she didn’t stay. There was a chance, after she was fully healed, she’d say thanks and go back to wherever she’d been staying before, maybe with family or friends, and why wouldn’t she? He was a stranger and sure, he’d saved her ass, but she didn’t know anything about him, just like knew virtually nothing about her other than her name, her age, and that she’d been an office worker. Inuyasha didn’t even know if she’d volunteer any information other than that when asked – it was clear she had some trust issues, with good reason – and it annoyed him that he knew so little about her, which was fucking ridiculous.

He’d just met the damn woman, of _course _he knew jack about her, and she was in no condition to share her life story anyway. And he told himself that it made sense, that he accepted the fact that she’d have to find out for herself whether or not he could be trusted beyond treating her wounds and providing safety while she slept, but he knew it was more than that.

For some fucking reason this tiny slip of a woman, within the simple hour he’d known her, Kagome Higurashi had managed to get under his skin, the urge to protect someone else other than himself roaring through him stronger than it ever had before. Maybe it was how she’d looked when he’d first found her; bloody, frail, and looking and smelling utterly terrified before her flight or fight response kicked in and she bolted from him, but whatever it was, Inuyasha found that he...didn’t entirely mind the thought of her hanging around. It had been instinctive, to go after her, a primal and purely male part of him screaming _protect _and he’d thoughtlessly obeyed.

And now Inuyasha was wondering if maybe it would be better if she didn’t stay and what was even worse, he really, really hoped that she did.

“Fuck my life,” he groused again, just barely above whisper, and finished the rest of his beer with several deep pulls.

The radio on the table crackled to life and Inuyasha was already standing it up to retrieve it when a familiar voice spilled from the speaker.

_“Monk to Ash, come in.”_

Ears flattening and darting a quick look to the slumbering woman on the bed, Inuyasha snatched up the radio and depressed the switch.

“Copy,” he murmured into the mic and with one last look toward Kagome, he started heading toward the ceiling doorway. “Standby.”

He didn’t receive a reply but hadn’t really expected to as he reached up and with a hard shove, pushed the door open. The ceiling was just low enough so he could grasp the edge and haul himself up into the square opening with minimal difficulty. Instead of standing, however, he settled on the edge and let his leg dangle inside while he braced the other on the floor, knee bent as he leaned back on his hand and brought the radio to his mouth once more.

“Ash to Monk, what’s your twenty?”

_“S and S,” _the voice responded a second later and Inuyasha relaxed_. “Back at you.”_

“The shop,” Inuyasha replied. “Status.”

_“In one piece,” _his friend said and added on, _“you?”_

“Stupid question.”

A low chuckle came over the speaker and Inuyasha had to grin.

_“Glad to hear you’re still alive, asshole,” _Miroku, aka Monk, told him and the half-demon snorted. _“You know it wouldn’t hurt to check in every other day or something. We worry about you.”_

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. “Don’t waste your energy. I’ve been doing this a helluva lot longer than any of you, idiot. And besides, checking in every other day will just drain the batteries for a pointless conversation that wouldn’t even last thirty seconds.”

_“Yes, but that’s what the chargers are for.”_

“Which uses electricity, which is only possible because the dojo has a private generator_, _which uses fuel to keep going, and as you know, fuel is scarce. Use your head, moron.”

He could practically hear his friend roll his eyes on the other end as he drawled, _“I sincerely doubt that giving power to the chargers makes that much of a difference, Ash.”_

“I’m not checking in.”

_“I—” _Miroku’s voice was abruptly cut off and then an irritated female voice came through the speaker, _“Make the idiot happy and check in, asshole, because you _know _if you don’t, he won’t stop until you respond, thus draining the battery even more.”_

Inuyasha scowled. “Fuck off, Slayer.”

_“You know I’m right,” _Sango, aka Slayer, replied and then must have handed the radio back to Miroku.

_“I mean,” _his friend said and the laughter was evident in his voice. _“She’s not wrong.”_

Suddenly tired of this conversation, Inuyasha abruptly changed topics. “Anything new to report?”

_“Possibly,” _Miroku replied and Inuyasha knew the fucker was grinning. Idiot. _“Cane is out patrolling with Iris, Smokey and Bandit are on clean up, the lovely Slayer is sparring with Kid. However, I like to believe Rogue showing up out of nowhere to drop off Fawn and Toad before disappearing again raises a few red flags.”_

Inuyasha frowned. “When?”

_“Two days ago,” _Miroku supplied and then because he knew the half-demon would ask, continued, _“He didn’t provide an explanation and when I asked Fawn, all she said was he was looking into something. Toad wasn’t any help either but that’s not a surprise. It was very strange.”_

Inuyasha had to agree. While it wasn’t uncommon for the bastard to wander for days on end without any word from him, it _was _unusual for him to go anywhere without Rin. Fiercely protective of the child, Sesshomaru didn’t trust anybody but himself to ensure her safety and so for him to leave her behind suggested something was up. Inuyasha would have to ask whenever the bastard deemed to grace them with his presence again, and that could be anywhere between a few days to a fucking month.

“Fucking fantastic,” Inuyasha grumbled and thrust a hand through his hair before shaking his head. “How’s Fawn?”

He was actually quite fond of the little ball of sunshine and it came to as shock to everyone that he was in turn one of her favorite people. And although it still boggled his mind why she preferred the asshole’s company to staying where it was safe with plenty of food, water, and a warm bed to sleep in every night, he’d long ago stopped questioning it because she’d always give the same answer, accompanied by a bright, genuine smile.

_“I belong with Sesshomaru.”_

He didn’t understand it, and probably never would.

_“Seems fine. Playing with Scout,” _Miroku replied. _“She was very tired when she arrived, however, and I suspect that might be part of the reason why Rogue dropped her off before leaving. I’d imagine it’d be difficult to get enough sleep when one travels as much as your brother.”_

“Half-brother,” Inuyasha automatically corrected, frowning. “Yeah, maybe. It’s that, or he’s going someplace where he deems is too dangerous to bring her with him. _Anywhere _outside is dangerous, though, so where the hell could he be going?”

_“Your guess is as good as mine, my friend,” _Miroku returned and the shrug was obvious in his tone.

The two lapsed into contemplative silence for several moments and Inuyasha was staring down into the square opening, wondering what the hell his bastard of a half-brother was up do, when the radio in his hand crackled to life again.

_“Anyway,” _Miroku said, sounding like his usual upbeat self, _“how about yourself, Ash? Anything noteworthy happen?”_

Inuyasha blinked at the radio then turned his gaze to the floor again, approximately where a certain dark-haired woman was sleeping peacefully beneath the shop. He grimaced.

“Monk,” he said dryly, “you wouldn’t believe the day I’ve had today.”

_“Oh?” _His friend sounded genuinely interested, and with a sigh, Inuyasha recounted the day’s events to him, staring with last night when he’d found that bag of toiletries (“Oh, Slayer and Iris will be thrilled,” he’d opined) to how he’d brought Kagome back to the shop and treated her wounds. Because Miroku was his best friend and one of the few people he could trust with anything, he also expressed is doubts and concerns about the entire situation and he was grateful when Miroku listened attentively and didn’t interrupt.

When he was finished, Miroku didn’t say anything for several minutes and Inuyasha let him gather his thoughts as he stared listlessly at a pallet socked with cases of water that he’d compiled himself. He’d be bringing some of them back with him to S and S in about four or five days when Smokey and Bandit showed up to take this place.

The two-way crackled to life, breaking the silence and interrupting his thoughts. "_You haven’t told her about us.” _He didn’t sound accusatory or anything, but merely curious.

Inuyasha sighed. “No. I barely got her to eat something before she passed out from pain and exhaustion.”

_“Do you think she’s dangerous? Can she be trusted?”_

The half-demon actually snorted at that, recalling the weak punches she’d thrown at him while trying to escape earlier.

“Trust me, Monk,” he drawled, “she’s about as dangerous as a kitten.”

_“Then I don’t see the harm in bringing her here,” _his friend said, completely serious. _“It sounds to me like she could really use some help, Ash. Even if she was separated from her family or friends, I wouldn’t feel right sending her back out there alone to find them herself so at the very least, we could assist her in locating them and escort her. And who knows? Maybe by doing so we can expand our band of merry misfits and get them to come back with us if where they are staying isn’t secured. The more people we have, the better chances of survival.”_

“And the more mouths we have to feed and clothe and protect and shelter,” Inuyasha fired back without missing a beat.

_“You don’t really believe that, Ash, so don’t try and tell me otherwise. I know you.”_

The half-demon grimaced and didn’t bother to comment. Sango liked to tease him that he was nothing but a big softie and dammit, sometimes he thought she might be right. Scout and now Kagome were prime examples of that. 

_“Smokey and Bandit will be there in five days,” _Miroku told him, accurately taking his silence for what it was. _“In the meantime, and I know I don’t have to tell you this, but try and get some more information on her family and her thoughts on joining us. I presume you are going to be seeing to her training if she stays, yes?”_

Inuyasha snorted into the mic.

Miroku laughed on the other end, but hit the switch on the two-way afterward so the half-demon didn’t hear it. _“I thought so. Let me know so I can tell the others. I’m sure the girls will be thrilled to have another woman to talk to.”_

Sighing, Inuyasha tipped his head and stared at the ceiling, golden eyes unseeing.

_“Ash?” _The two-way crackled. _“Do you read?”_

He hit the switch and raised it to his lips. “Yeah,” Inuyasha murmured and dropped his gaze back to the floor, seeing through it to the oblivious woman sleeping on the bed. “Yeah, I read you.”

_“See you in five days, my friend.” _A pause. _“Try not to die before that, alright?”_

Inuyasha’s lips twitched and he chucked, depressing the switch and returning, “Same to you, idiot. And tell Scout not to eat all my fucking ramen.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **So I know I’ve said it before, but I’m gonna say it again:** this is _not_ based on the show The Walking Dead. Obviously there will be some elements from it, and some ideas that I liked enough that I’m probably going to borrow, but it’s definitely not going to be as plot-heavy as that series. I’m going for a more humorous feel for this story and while yeah, there will be some drama and death, it won’t be any of the main characters - c’mon, you know me; like i could _ever_ kill one of them off lol - and it definitely won’t be as angsty. <strike>GOD that show has made me cry so much already and i’m only on season 7 a;sfjailfhf</strike>
> 
> Oh and I guess i should mention that supplies in this story aren't as scarce as they are in TWD. It’s not about surviving with minimal resources anyway; it’s about sticking together in hard times, finding happiness in a place riddled with hate and death, and keeping hope alive long enough to last Another Day in Hell. <strike>lololol see what i did there a;djfiaofj *gets bricked*</strike>

When Kagome opened her eyes from what was probably the deepest sleep she’d had in over a month, her body’s reaction was instantaneous: her breathing quickened, her pulse skyrocketed, and she started shaking, full body tremors that made her extremely aware of the throbbing, burning agony in her left shoulder that was arcs of stinging pain down her arm.

Her eyes darted around frantically but all she could see was dark, shadows closing in around her; there was no light, crushing, cold blackness that burrowed beneath her skin and took chilling residence in her bones. Her mouth opened on a scream, but no sound came out; her throat was dry, tight with panic with chapped lips and a heavy tongue. Her ears buzzed, so loud, head pounding, she couldn’t hear, couldn’t see, she was alone, isolated, _not safe._

It was cold; so cold, consuming, ice replacing the blood in her veins and taking root in her heart, deadening the issue, her flesh, killing her from the inside. She was bit; her shoulder was on fire, throbbing and pulling and rotting and it was her fault, she shouldn’t have fallen asleep, oh god, why did she sleep, where was she, it wasn’t safe, she was going to die, no no no it wasn’t fair, she’d tried so hard to survive, why—

Hands, burning hot, sharp points pricking into her skin, seized her arms and Kagome thrashed, she struggled, she screamed. No, it was one of them, it was going to tear into her flesh, finish what the other had started at her shoulder.

“—ome!”

It hurt; her shoulder, her throat, her chest, she couldn’t breathe, it was so hard, why couldn’t she _breathe? _Her fingers clawed, scratched, dug into the flesh that sought to rip into her, tear her apart, kill her—

“—sha! It’s me! You’re safe!”

She heard a hissing sound, heard a growled curse and she gasped when her hands were suddenly restrained, warm shackles circling her wrists and she sobbed, cried, no _please_, she didn’t want to die, hadn’t she suffered enough already, it was her fault, Houjo didn’t _deserve_—

“Kagome! It’s me! Dammit, Kagome, open your eyes!”

With a deep, shuttering gasp, Kagome’s eyes flew open and she found herself staring into twin pools of glowing amber. Her body jerked and her mouth opened on another hoarse scream, the tears hot on her cold skin—

“You’re safe,” a voice told her, low, urgent, and Kagome stilled. “You’re safe Kagome, it’s okay, calm down. Hey, c’mon, look at me. _Look _at me Kagome, you’re safe.”

A whimper escaped her and her vision blurred with more tears as finally, finally her heart calmed in her chest, the buzzing in her ears stopped, and she could _breathe_.

She was...she was safe. Inuyasha. Inuyasha had saved her, he was here, and he’d treated her shoulder—gunshot wound. She’d been shot, not bitten, she wasn’t going to die.

She was safe. She was safe. She was safe.

“Inu—” she choked out, her throat tight, dry. “I—”

“Hey, hey, you’re okay,” he rumbled and released her hands, reaching out to tuck a damp strand of ebony hair behind her ear. “You’re alright. You’re safe.”

Dragging in deep breaths of air, eyes wide and staring into concerned honeyed eyes, Kagome swallowed thickly and finally managed to jerky nod, closing her eyes briefly as she attempted to steady her breathing. Her hands found the solid strength of his arms and hung on, the reassuring warmth of his skin helping to ground her, remind her where she was, that she was safe, she didn’t have to be afraid anymore.

When she opened her eyes again Inuyasha was still staring down at her, the concern writ large on his face, and Kagome took a moment to take everything in, belatedly realizing it wasn’t dark anymore. He must have turned on the light at some point when he realized she couldn’t see anything. He was kneeling above her, shirtless, jeans unfastened and hanging low on his hips, and idly she wondered if he’d been in the middle of dressing when she’d started panicking.

Kagome blinked. “Hi.” Her voice was rough, wispy, and she winced when it scratched her throat.

His frown didn’t lessen any, but he looked relieved. “Hey,” Inuyasha rumbled back and brushed her bangs away from her eyes. “You alright? You started screaming and scared the shit outta me.”

She managed a trembling smile and gave another shaky nod. “Yes,” she breathed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. It...was dark and it took me a minute to remember where I was and what happened.” Her shoulder twinged and she grimaced. “And for a moment I thought the pain in my shoulder meant that...”

She couldn’t finish, dropping her gaze to stare at his chest, riddled with scars and old wounds. With a guilty flush she spotted three red scratches on his left pectoral, remembering his the sound of his pained hiss. 

He must have noticed where she was looking and quickly shook his head. 

“S’okay,” he muttered and brushed her cheek with a finger before drawing back. “Don’t worry about it.”

Inuyasha studied her quietly for another minute, making sure she was truly okay before leaning back and offering a hand. Sucking in a breath, Kagome placed her smaller hand in his and allowed him to carefully pull her up, grateful when he reached around with his arm to catch her around the waist in an attempt to stabilize her shoulder. It throbbed with the movement and she gritted her teeth as pain lanced down her arm to the very tips of her fingers.

Inuyasha made sure she was steady before abruptly shifting around with a soft grunt until he was settled behind her. With one leg hanging off the bed and the other stretched out beside her, he snagged her around the waist and carefully dragged her between his legs so he could take a look at her shoulder.

“Can you lift your arm?” 

Claws lightly grazed the small of her back as he started pushing up her shirt with the intent to inspect her shoulder and an involuntary shudder crawled along the length of her spine. Flushing darkly and praying he hadn’t noticed, Kagome gave a jerky nod and sucked in a breath, holding it as she slowly raised her arm.

She bit down hard on her lip to stifle the whimper of pain that threatened to escape. She was grateful when Inuyasha acted quickly, stretching the wide sleeve over enough to pull off her arm before lifting the shirt up and over, exposing the red-stained bandage covering the back of her shoulder.

“You good?” Inuyasha asked as she lowered her arm back down the second she was able to, ears flicking when her breath left her lungs in a heavy whoosh of air.

“Fine,” she replied a little breathlessly, gritting her teeth.

He paused at the strain in her voice and stared at the back of her head, listening as she attempted to breathe through the pain. She was tense and he could hear the rapid beat of her heart.

“You don’t sound fine,” he stated conversationally and started carefully cutting off the bandage wrapped around her torso with a single talon.

“What, should I be laughing?” Kagome muttered bitterly, tensing as another twinge of pain stabbed at her shoulder.

Inuyasha frowned that time and bit back a retort that was sure to sour her mood more than it already was. He didn’t know if it was because she’d just woken up or if it was something else on her mind, but he figured that his lack of tact would not help the situation, either.

The bandage fell around her waist and carefully he peeled away the red-stained gauze pad covering the injury. Puffy, discolored, and the sutures predictably an angry red, at least it looked like he’d managed to treat it before the infection really set it and he was relieve that was one less thing they had to worry about.

“Looks good,” he told her and brushed his thumb across his handiwork in a feather light touch. “A little swollen and you got a nasty bruise going on, but looks like we caught the infection before it had a chance to set in. Another two weeks or so and you’ll have a wicked battle scar to tell your grandkids about.”

Moving from behind her, being careful not to jostle her shoulder too much, Inuyasha stood up to retrieve fresh bandages, antibacterial ointment, painkillers, and a bottle of water. Kagome grunted and still didn’t look too pleased, a slight pout of her face as she glared at the floor, and Inuyasha shot her a look as he offered the water and Ibuprofen.

“It could be worse,” he reminded and settled behind her again. “Shot could’ve nicked an artery and you woulda bled out before finding help. The asshole coulda aimed at your head and you’d be dead. Lotta possibilities and you lucked out with a non life-threatening one.”

Inuyasha paused and his brows dipped down into a slight frown. Come to think it of, Kagome actually had been extremely lucky she’d only gotten hit in her shoulder and not anywhere else, and suddenly he was wondering if the shot to the shoulder had been intentional. The wound was small and neat, suggesting the gun had been held by a steady hand. Inuyasha was beginning to suspect the gunman had wanted to slow her down, not kill her, and the ball of dread that landed in his stomach, leaden and uncomfortable, chilled him to the bone.

Kagome made an inarticulate noise, grumbled, and then released a sigh and closed her eyes.

“Sorry,” she muttered, feeling guilty for snapping at him and a little foolish for acting like a child. “You’re right. I just...I guess I’m just not made for this kind of thing.”

Warm fingers spread something oily and cold across her shoulder and she hissed, tensing slightly before relaxing.

To her surprise Inuyasha snorted and wiped the excess ointment off on his jeans before grabbing a fresh gauze pad and carefully pressing it to her shoulder.

“I don’t think anybody is made for this kind of thing,” he remarked and started wrapping up her shoulder again. “Out of _anything _we could have gotten stuck with, it had to be motherfucking _zombies_. Christ.”

Kagome had to smile at his less than pleased tone. “You seem like you’re doing alright for yourself,” she opined, sweeping her eyes over her surroundings.

He grunted. “That’s mostly because I’m a stubborn asshole and I refuse to let a fucking corpse get the best of me.” 

He eyed her shoulder and gave a satisfied nod before tugging the shirt back down and helping her slip her arm through the sleeve again.

Kagome actually laughed softly that time and feeling accomplished, Inuyasha stood to put away the medical supplies and toss the bloodied bandages. After that he finally took the opportunity to finish dressing, fastening his jeans and digging around for a clean t-shirt.

His ear flicked at the whisper soft sound of disappointment that came from behind him and he had to fight the smirk that threatened to spread across his face as he pulled it over his head.

“Thank you,” she murmured and he glanced over to find her staring at him with a soft smile on her face, a becoming shade of light pink coloring her cheeks. “I know I said it already, but...really. You didn’t have to help me, but you did, especially since it’s not uncommon for someone to only be concerned with number one and be reluctant to share their resources.”

Inuyasha crossed his arms and studied her for a moment, amber gold searching chocolate brown, before he tipped her a fangy grin.

“Well, lookie that,” he murmured, cocking a brow. “You’re on a roll with this luck thing you got going for you. If the world hadn’t gone to hell I’d ask you for the winning lotto numbers.”

“Five, twelve, twenty, twenty-one, forty-seven, and one.”

He stared at her. “Cute.”

Kagome grinned.

Rolling his eyes and shaking his head, Inuyasha turned to rifle through the “pantry” for some breakfast and found some Poptarts stashed behind a box of no doubt stale Frosted Flakes. He had no idea how old it was, but grabbed it anyway. There were only two food items that were predicted to last through the end of the fucking world, and those were Poptarts and Twinkies. 

He gave one to Kagome, snagged the other one for himself, and tossed the empty box toward the trash bin. He missed, heard Kagome’s badly stifled snort, and tossed a mock glare her way. She blinked and smiled innocently at him before tearing open her breakfast and taking a tentative bite, no doubt having the same concerns as himself.

Plopping down in his comfy armchair with a grunt, Inuyasha sliced open his Poptart and they lapsed into silence as they indulged in the dry and slightly chewy breakfast pastry. Unsurprisingly Inuyasha finished his first, however when Kagome discovered that her stomach was not going to rebel she wasn’t far behind. Despite it only being the run of the mill Poptart that had probably passed its expiration date a while ago, for being the first substantial thing she’d eaten in days, it was the most delicious thing in the world right then.

Still, even though she wanted to cram the rest of it in her mouth, she forced herself to slow down and eat the second part a little slower. Knowing her luck, her weakened body would reject the sudden abundance of nourishment and she’d end up embarrassing herself by getting sick everywhere. She definitely wanted to avoid that and not waste the food Inuyasha was generously sharing with her.

She knew what the world had been subjected to now. It was kill or be killed, look out for number one, and it was rare to find someone willing to help a perfect stranger. Inuyasha had more than likely saved her life, and Kagome would be forever grateful for that.

Swallowing her last bit of Poptart, Kagome started down at the foil wrapper in her hands, worrying her bottom lip as she mulled over her thoughts. She flicked a glance to her half-demon host and wasn’t very surprised to find him already staring at her, head propped in his hand with his foot resting on his opposite knee, looking utterly at ease.

She blinked and offered smile. Inuyasha’s brows dipped into a small frown and she sighed, looking back down at her lap.

“Listen, Inuyasha...” she began, brow wrinkling as she attempted to put thoughts into words. When she looked back up again Inuyasha had both booted feet on the ground and he was leaning forward, giving her his full attention with elbows propped on his knees and golden stare directed at her.

Her expression gentled into another small smile and she continued, the words suddenly coming so easily to her now, “If it hadn’t been for you...if you hadn’t followed me, killed off those rotters, and brought me here, I’d probably be—” Her voice cracked and she swallowed thickly, brown eyes huge and earnest as she gazed at him.

“You saved my life, Inuyasha,” she said roughly. “And I don’t know how I’ll ever begin to repay you for that. So if there’s something...anything I can do repay you, please tell me. I mean, I admit I...I can’t do much, especially in my current condition.” She looked a mite sheepish as she shrugged apologetically. “But I promise I’ll do my best. If you let me stick around, I’ll do whatever it takes to earn my keep. I can learn, I can—I can adapt, just please...”

Sucking in a shaky breath, Kagome briefly closed her eyes, steeled herself, and then looked directly into amber eyes regarding her intensely.

“Please don’t send me back out there. “

Staring into those gorgeous pools of dark brown, so open and pleading and impossibly wide, something in Inuyasha’s chest tightened and his hands clenched into tight fists. The urge to protect surged within him so strongly his entire body tensed, as if preparing for a fight, ready to defend this vulnerable woman with his life if he needed to. Which was absolutely fucking bizarre since he’d just met her, but at the same time, he supposed it made sense.

The others always liked to tease and badger that he had a soft spot for those smaller and weaker than him and looking at her now, heart on her sleeve and practically begging him to not feed her to the wolves – or in this case the undead – Inuyasha had known from the second he’d seen her, curled up, bloody, and terrified, that he’d never be able to send her off on her own again.

She was under his protection now, and he’d be damned if she was going to get hurt again under his watch.

Kagome was starting to get anxious from his continued silence, squirming on her seat and biting down on her lip in uncertainty as she dropped her gaze. He could smell her trepidation as she feared for the worst, hear her heart speed up a bit in her chest, and Inuyasha acted quickly, hating the smell of her fear.

“I’m not gonna send you back out there, Kagome,” he assured her, his voice firm, and was gratified when she snapped her gaze back to his, twin pools of dark brown glinting with barely concealed hope. “And there might be something you can do for me, but first I need you to tell me something.”

Her brow furrowed slightly in confusion but she nodded, curious.

Inuyasha studied her for a moment, golden eyes assessing, revealing nothing, before entreating quietly, “Tell me what happened. Where were you before I found you? Do you a place to get back to? Your family? Friends?”

For just a split second, and something he probably wouldn’t have even noticed had he not been paying such close attention, a deep, soul-crushing sorrow flashed across Kagome’s face and eyes but it was gone as quick as it had arrived before she averted her gaze.

For just that second a hidden agony had been so palpable Inuyasha had felt it like a physical blow to his gut and the shocked breath he sucked in was completely involuntary. Jesus...what had this woman been through to portray such deep pain, even for just an instant? Inuyasha opened his mouth to tell her she didn’t have to tell him, that he would still take her in anyway, but her quiet voice quickly shut him up and his ears strained forward to hear her soft words.

“We got separated,” she began, an audible strain in her voice and still avoiding his gaze. “M-my family and I, just moments after the outbreak started. We were all inside our house, minding our own business, when someone who had been praying at the shrine suddenly came crashing through the door, bleeding from the neck and screaming about the dead coming back to life, before falling to the floor, dead. He’d...he’d been bitten.”

Kagome took a calming breath and closed her eyes, recalling with clarity what had happened next. Her voice was cracked and unsteady as she continued, “We...we didn’t know what to do. We were all standing around, stunned as the man bled all over the floor, when more of them came through the windows and door. Hungry, starved for human flesh, they came after us and we did what any normal person would do.

“We ran. Gramps tried to stay and fend them off, but Mama managed to drag him away and toward the basement where we could go downstairs and out the cellar door. I remember hearing Souta screaming – he was crying...scared – and Mama trying to tell him it was going to be okay as I ran after them, scared out of my mind. But something caught my leg, and I fell. The man on the floor, the one that’d been bitten, had turned and grabbed my leg. I managed to shake him off and go downstairs after them. Mama was waiting for me and she grabbed my hand and when we got outside to the street...”

Her voice caught and she shuddered, wrapping her good arm around herself as if to preserve heat. Inuyasha dug his claws into his palms, resisting the urge to go over and protect her even from the chill of the basement. He’d suspected her story was something like this, but still, hearing it first hand was tougher than he’d thought it would be. Fuck, he hated the thought of Kagome going through this, being subjected to such terror and horror.

“It was...it was chaos,” Kagome went on, voice rough, and he brought his attention back to her. “People dead everywhere, b-blood...everywhere...groups of undead feasting on dead bodies, hordes of them chasing after fleeing people. Screaming, cries for help, children sobbing for their parents...g-god, it was—”

She put a hand over her mouth as her eyes fluttered close, holding back a sob.

“Kagome, you don’t have to—”

Hastily she shook her head. “It’s okay,” she rasped. “I’m okay. Just...give me a minute.”

Frowning deeply and looking like he wanted to disagree, Inuyasha nonetheless clenched his jaw and nodded, waiting for her to continue.

Taking several deep breaths, Kagome managed to compose herself after another minute and went on, her voice a bit steadier.

“We ran. Gramps found a still running car and herded us toward it. I was holding Souta’s hand, half-dragging him and Mama was in front of me. One of them caught Souta’s arm and jerked him back. I...I screamed and just started punching and kicking it, yanking him back to me, and when it finally let go I shoved him toward Mama who got him into the car then herself. I was going to follow but escaping people ran in front of me and cut me off, knocking me over in their haste to get away. I heard Mama screaming my name, Souta crying, and then I heard nothing but gunshots and the sound of a car driving away.”

Inuyasha’s stomach plummeted to somewhere the same region as his feet. His expression was a mix of pain and outrage while the hard lump in his throat was making it hard to breathe. Did her family just leave her there to die?!

Kagome stoke a peek at him and accurately guessed what he was thinking. Her smile was wan and trembling. 

“They didn’t leave me,” she told him and Inuyasha’s growl abruptly cut off—he hadn’t even been aware he was making it. “The people who knocked me over got into the car with my family and drove away, forcing them to leave me behind. I don’t fault them for that.”

Grimacing, Inuyasha dragged a hand down his face and nodded, feeling slightly ill. “What happened next?” he asked, his voice rough and he cleared his throat.

Sighing, Kagome wiped at her eyes, at the unshed tears brimming them, and explained, “I escaped from the rotters trying to eat me and started running. I didn’t have a destination in mind, just...anywhere safe, I guess. Somebody must have been looking out for me because my friend H-Houjo—” Her voice cracked again and she sucked in a breath.

“Houjo found me and took me to his family’s house. They had a bomb shelter with food and water and that’s where I’ve been staying since it all started. Well...until recently.”

The look Inuyasha gave her was equal parts skeptical and incredulous. “Your friend has a bomb shelter in this day and age?”

Her answer smile was small but genuine and something eased in his chest. “Houjo’s father was a bit eccentric, but it turned out to be a good thing. The shelter was underground and fortified with layers of thick sheet metal, cement, and brick. It saved our lives, along with a few others Houjo’s family took in. They were good people, generous and kind, and Houjo...he was among one of the most kindest, genuine people I knew.”

Inuyasha stiffened and his jaw tightened as he sat up a little straighter. Ice entered his veins, chilling him to the bone, and he swallowed once, twice. His voice was thick when he could speak again.

“Kagome...what happened to Houjo.”

She’d used _was_. Past tense.

Kagome’s eyes connected with his and those deep pools were haunted as she breathed, “We were running out of food. I volunteered to go on a run to find some because I wanted to do something to repay them for taking me in, but Houjo wouldn’t let me ago alone. He had a gun—it didn’t have a full round and he didn’t know how to use it, but it was better than nothing and he wanted to make sure I was protected. So together we left and managed to evade the roamers long enough to get inside his house to see if anything was left. It was a mess inside, of course, full of dead...uh, undead, and not much was salvageable, but we looked anyway.

“I was in the kitchen looking through the pantry and didn’t notice the one coming up behind me. Houjo did.”

Inuyasha paled. Oh...shit.

“He shot it at and missed. He drew its attention so I was able to get away and he just kept...shooting at it until he was firing blanks. I grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed it in the neck, trying to slice the head off, but all I did was get its attention back on me, and I was frozen, terrified, unable to move and Houjo, he...”

Kagome stopped to let out a sob and cover her mouth again, squeezing her eyes shut tight as she forced out through gritted teeth, “He shoved me away and took the bite meant for me. He—I remember his scream as he took the knife lodged in its neck, yanked it upward, and tore the head off until the only thing connecting it was skin. By then the noise we were making drew more of them inside and suddenly we were surrounded. Houjo, he—he told me to run. He sacrificed himself so I could get away and I—I—”

Unable to bear it any longer, Kagome broke down, hiding her face in her hands as she emitted gut-wrenching sobs and Inuyasha reacted without thinking.

Standing up with a curse, he crossed the distance between them and sank down beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and tugging her into his side. Kagome gasped and clung to him, hands fisting in the back of his shirt as she buried her face in his neck and cried. Her arm protested the movement but the pain in her heart trumped the pain in her shoulder so it was easily ignored as she wept for her friend, wept for the kind-hearted boy she’d known since child-hood and his untimely, grisly death.

Ears pinned flat against his head, Inuyasha closed his eyes and sought to comfort her in any way he could, running his hand through her hair while the other massaged her back, rumbling in his chest as he let her cry against him for however long she needed. He wanted to apologize, tell her everything was going to be okay, but he couldn’t find the words. His throat was tight, his chest hurt, and he gave his silent commendations to the boy that had sacrificed himself to save her.

He wanted to do more for her – he wanted to track down every undead, rotting son of a bitch responsible for her agony, wanted to bring her friend back to life, find her family, introduce the assholes that had separated her from them to Tessaiga. But he couldn’t, so he did the only thing he _could _do: he held her tight and bore her pain with her, every sob cutting him to the quick, every whimper driving the knife deeper into his heart. And as the warmth of her tears soaked his neck and dampened the collar of his shirt, Inuyasha cradled the back of her head and vowed she would never have to go through something like that ever again.

Maybe it was a foolish vow, especially when death was unavoidable during these trying times, but that didn’t matter. He was going to do his damnedest to protect her, physically _and _emotionally, no matter what it took.

He didn’t know how long they sat there but Inuyasha didn’t care, content to let her lean against him as her sobs gradually died down to sniffles and shaky sighs. When she finally leaned away from him, rubbing at her eyes and nose, she was much more composed and the smile she tipped him, though wavering, suggested she’d needed that release badly. It wouldn’t have surprised him if she hadn’t had the time to mourn properly before now. Running for your life tended to take up your full concentration, no matter the circumstances of your inner turmoil.

Inuyasha tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before retrieving her water bottle that had fallen to the floor and handing it over. She mumbled her thanks and uncapped it, taking a few delicate sips and then a few mouthfuls.

“Okay?” he murmured and unthinkingly put a hand on her back, massaging the muscles in an absentminded gesture of comfort. Kagome sighed and relaxed into his touch.

“Yes,” she breathed in a voice slightly hoarse. “Thank you. For...letting me do that.” She aimed another smile at him, dark eyes shining with her gratitude. It felt good to tell somebody and let it all go.

His ear flicked as a slight frown marred his features. “You didn’t tell his family?”

Kagome winced and immediately he regretted it. “Shit, sorry, I—”

“No, it’s fine,” she insisted, shaking her head, and he was glad to find she wasn’t about to start crying again. “After...it happened, I did what he told me to do and ran. I thought about going back to the shelter, but I...I couldn’t. It’s my fault he’s dead. I couldn’t bring myself to face them. The guilt was too much and like a damned coward I fled. It’s _my _fault, if I hadn’t insisted on going—”

“No,” Inuyasha interrupted her and gabbed her chin, turning her face and locking gazes with her. Kagome’s eyes widened and a soft gasp escaped her lips at the intensity in his eyes.

“I’m gonna stop you right there,” he said firmly. “It’s _not _your fault, Kagome. Your friend died protecting you. He knew what he was doing when he shoved you away. Hell, I’m sure he knew what was going to happen, but he did it anyway. You _can’t _blame yourself for the actions of others, Kagome. You can’t. It’s too much to carry and the guilt would crush you.”

He clenched his jaw, swallowed thickly, and with Kagome’s wide eyes gazing up at him, dark and brimming with more tears, he said gruffly, “Trust me. I’ve tried. So instead of burdening yourself with fault that’s not yours, honor your friend’s sacrifice, be grateful, and keep moving. He died so you could live, Kagome, and you need to honor that. And if you let me, I can help you do that.”

Bottom lip trembling, Kagome took a shaky breath and let it out slowly, digesting his words and mulling them over. She would always feel a small measure of guilt, but she couldn’t let it amount to more than that. He was right; Houjo had died saving her, died so she could continuing living, and she would do her best to honor his sacrifice because what other choice did she have? She didn’t want to die and since she didn’t want to die...well.

She’d just have to keep living, wouldn’t she? If not out of spite or fear of the monsters wreaking havoc on the earth, then for Houjo, and for her family that she refused to believe was dead as well.

With a hardened resolve, and feeling better than she had since this whole shitshow started, Kagome stared into his eyes and nodded.

“How?” she whispered and Inuyasha knew what she was asking.

Gratified to see resolve in her eyes, the spark of life bringing color back to her cheeks, Inuyasha had to refrain from grinning as he said, “I can teach you how to survive. Show you how to fire a gun, take it apart, clean it, put it back together and reload it. I can teach you how to fight and how to defend yourself. I can do all of that, but you have to want it, Kagome. You have to want to become stronger and be willing to put your life at risk sometimes. I’m not gonna sugarcoat it; you’re gonna have to kill if you wanna survive, Kagome, and I’m not just talking about the undead fuckers out there. There are gonna be people who wanna kill you because you have what they don’t, assholes that wanna kill you just for the hell of it, but you already knew that. And it’s gonna be hard; I won’t lie about that. But I swear to you now that I’ll do my best to prepare you for this world gone to shit and I’ll teach you everything I know to survive.”

Inuyasha watched some of the color leech from her face and she winced, looking like she was about to taste that Poptart she’d eaten for a second time in a not so pleasant way. He didn’t take it back though, didn’t tell her he’d protect her from that if he could. Because she _would _have to kill if she wanted to survive. It was the way of the world now and nobody could avoid it. It was either that, or be killed yourself, and he hoped to God she realized that, because he wouldn’t sway her. Kagome had to make this decision for herself, she had to choose to fight, no matter how hard it was going to be.

She had to choose to survive for herself, to keep fighting, no matter how bad Inuyasha wanted to protect her from it.

Kagome took in Inuyasha’s features with wide brown eyes, the set jaw, lips tightening into a thin line, and eyes the color of whiskey burning into her own with an intensity that made her breath catch. His words resounded in her head, loud, serious, laced with an urgency that had every hair on her body standing on end. But there was something else, something that he wasn’t telling her, but Kagome picked up on it nonetheless. She saw it in his eyes, felt in the way his hand gripped her arm, firm, but not enough to hurt.

Inuyasha was asking her to trust him far more than what she already had, because if she said yes, if she agreed, she had so much more to lose than her health. He was essentially asking her to put her life in his hands so he could teach her how to protect it and that should have given her pause, should have made her take a proverbial step back and seriously consider what he was offering.

But she didn't because Kagome already instinctively knew she could trust him. He’d already patched up her shoulder, given her food, water, a place to sleep and regain her strength. Hell, he’d trusted her first, bringing her into his shelter and putting at risk his own health and safety. Granted, he was much stronger than she and he probably hadn’t been at all worried about her trying to overtake him, but it was the principle of the matter. 

So of course Kagome already knew what her answer was because she did want to be stronger. She didn’t want to be a burden on him or anybody, she didn’t want to have to rely on other people to take care of her and get her food or whatever. She wanted to be able to take care of herself, defend herself and protect others who were in the same predicament as she’d been.

And when she finally saw her family again, she wanted to protect them as well and make sure nothing ever happened to them. She swore what happened to Houjo would _never _happen to any of them. Not while she was alive.

“Yes,” Kagome finally answered, staring directly into his eyes, and the relief that swept through him was powerful. She smiled, no doubt seeing it reflected on his face, and she nodded. “I want you to teach me, Inuyasha. I want to become stronger and defend myself so when I find my family, and I protect them, too.”

A corner of his lips quirked up into a half-grin. He had to admire her determination; it was definitely a good trait to have, especially for what she was about to endure in the coming weeks.

“Good,” he rumbled, giving a nod himself as he squeezed her arm. “I’m glad you don’t wanna die just yet. I’d be pissed if I wasted my medical supplies and food on a lost cause.”

Kagome had to laugh. He was right, so she wasn’t offended.

“I do have one question, though,” she admitted and he cocked a brow. “You said that you might have something I can do for you before I explained what happened to me. What is it?”

He shrugged. “You just agreed to it.”

Kagome blinked. “What?”

“You agreed to let me teach you how to fight and protect yourself,” he answered as he stood up and wandered over to the table to belt on his holster and gun. “So you already did it.”

She shook her head, confused. “But how would you teaching me how to fight benefit you in any way? You already know how to fight and all that stuff. I’m more of a liability than an asset.”

Inuyasha glanced at her as he clipped the radio to his belt. Then to her surprise he grinned and crossed his arms as he turned to face her.

“There are others back at the dojo I own. Twelve altogether, including me, and now it’s thirteen since you’re officially part of it now. _Me _teaching _you _benefits us all because it means there’s another person defending our shelter and the people who live in it. It’s another person looking for food, supplies, water, weapons, anything that would help us better survive. There are strength in numbers, Kagome, and while others think that too many people means more mouths to feed and clothe and protect, we see it as an opportunity to save more lives, kill more monsters, and make the world just the smallest bit safer. So basically, the glass is half full, not empty.”

Kagome stared at him with wide eyes, mouth parted slightly in astonishment. She liked that theory and liked even more that there were others like Inuyasha. She wouldn’t have to be alone again and it was all because of this magnificent, strong man who she’d been fortunate enough to find. Or rather, fortunate enough for _him _to find _her_.

Ridiculously feeling like crying again, Kagome gave him a trembling but genuine smile as she sniffled and dashed a hand over her eyes. At his panicked look a watery laugh bubbled up and she shook her head, managing to stave off the tears and taking a calming breath.

“Sorry,” she muttered. “I’m okay. It’s just...I’m relieved and...glad I don’t have to be alone again.” Kagome lifted her face and her next smile was truly brilliant, dark eyes glittering with her gratitude, and absurdly Inuyasha’s heart skipped a beat in his chest.

“Thank you, Inuyasha. You’ve already done so much for me in such a short amount of time, and I just...” She sighed and nodded determinedly, eye flashing with resolve. “I won’t let you down.”

Inuyasha watched her silently for a moment, golden eyes searching her face, her eyes, before a smirk spread across his face and he nodded once.

“Good. I’m counting on it.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was gonna post this chapter on Halloween, but between moving into my house, cleaning, moving the last of my crap outta my apartment, and just generally running around like a chicken with its head cut off trying to get everything done, I completely forgot about it lol. Better late than never, I suppose.

And with that, Inuyasha strapped his black bladed combat knife to his hip and retrieved Tessaiga from its designated resting place on the wall, tying it with practiced ease at his opposite hip.

“Training won’t start right away for a number of reasons,” he said, reaching onto the top shelf of the bookcase and bringing down the shotgun. “The first being your shoulder, so for now I just want you to rest and concentrate on getting better. We’ll work out the details after you meet everyone and get settled at the dojo.”

Kagome nodded as he slung the firearm over his shoulder so it hung across his back. Her eyes followed him as he picked up some trash bags propped against the wall and when he started for the door in the ceiling that opened into the back room of the store, Kagome’s blood turned to ice and the color drained from her face. Oh, god—was he going somewhere?

“I gotta take this trash and dump it in the pit,” Inuyasha announced, confirming her fears as he reached up and shoved the door open with a grunt. “If I don’t the basemen will start to reek, you and I both don’t want that, and I can’t leave it outside the store either. The stench will attract unwanted attention from both undead and demons sniffing around for a place to take over, and I wanna avoid that if possible.”

A distressed sound echoed in her throat as Kagome hastily stood up as Inuyasha tossed one bag then the other up and out the door.

“I won’t be long,” he continued as she stumbled over to him as fast as her weakened body would allow. “Just fifteen minutes or so, twenty tops. Stay here and—”

“No!”

Small hands latched onto his shirt and Inuyasha stumbled back in surprise, looking down to find Kagome holding onto him for dear life and he was alarmed to find genuine fear in those dark eyes of hers.

He frowned. “What—”

“Don’t go, please,” she begged him, her grip so tight on his shirt her knuckles were white.

Inuyasha sighed and shook his head. “I have to take this trash out, Kagome. My nose is a little more sensitive than yours and—”

“Then take me with you,” she urgently beseeched, her voice holding a desperate edge that gave him pause. Pleading brown locked onto thoughtful amber and she swallowed thickly. “_Please_, Inuyasha, don’t leave me here.”

His frown deepened and his stomach clenched uncomfortably when he detected a trace amount of fear underlining her scent. What the hell?

“I can’t, Kagome. Not with your shoulder like that. You won’t be able to hang on, and I’ll only be on a few minutes—”

“_Please_.” Kagome looked on the verge of tears and he stiffened. “Please, Inuyasha, even if it _is_ only for a few minutes, I can’t...I can’t be alone again. Don’t leave me alone, please.”

Her grip tightened on his shirt, her bottom lip trembled, and Inuyasha’s resolved broke. Fuck.

Heaving a sigh and thrusting a hand through his short hair, Inuyasha’s features twisted into a light scowl, not entirely happy about this, but figuring he had no choice. Obviously there was some mental scars that she’d hidden well until this point and he’d feel like a colossal asshole if he left Kagome like this when she obviously didn’t want to be alone for any amount of time, even going so far as to beg him to take her with him. So he’d just have to make some slight adjustments is all and be extra vigilant.

Damn those big brown eyes and full pink lips.

“Fine,” he grumbled, his disapproval evident in the scowl he directed at her, but she was unaffected, face brightening into a pleased smile. “You can come with me but you have to listen and do _exactly_ as I say, alright? Do not question me. If I say run, you fucking _run_. If I say grab my gun and shoot, pull the trigger and _shoot_. Understand?”

Nodding eagerly and trying not to think about what could happen if he told her to do any of that, Kagome beamed at him, relieved that he’d agreed and she wouldn’t be left alone. Perhaps it was ridiculous, especially when he’d said he’d only be gone for about fifteen minutes, but Kagome didn’t think she could take the solitude for even that short amount of time. She truly hoped she’d be able to get over this unfounded fear of being alone fairly quickly, and with Inuyasha’s help, along with his friends, Kagome was confident she would.

“I will,” she told him, dark eyes earnest as she gazed up into his stern face. “I promise. Thank you, Inuyasha. I just...” She sighed. “Thanks.”

Whiskey colored eyes studied her quietly, searching, calculating, and he gave a curt nod.

“Wait here.”

Her eyes widened and before she could object, he said, “I’m just going up to put the bags outside, get the four-wheeler ready, and get rid of any roamers that are too close. Five minutes, Kagome. I’ll be quick.”

Kagome bit her lip, clearly hesitant, but she nodded and released him, stepping back.

Nodding, Inuyasha didn’t spare her another glance before bending his knees and launching himself up and out of the basement.

Already Kagome could feel the silence pressing in on her, the cold seeping into her bones and to distract herself she searched for something to secure her arm and keep it stabilized. If they were going to be riding on a four-wheeler, no doubt it was going to be bumpy and she was going to need her other hand to hold onto something so she didn’t fall. She didn’t think Inuyasha would let her, but she didn’t want to seem _completely_ helpless.

Wrinkling her nose, Kagome dug around in his box of clothes and pulled out an old button down flannel that would have to do. She sat down and had just managed to fashion the shirt into a homemade sling when Inuyasha returned as promised.

He raised his brows in surprise when he saw what she was doing then nodded his approval, walking over and helping her situate her arm. He tightened the knot, made sure her arm was tight against her side, and studied his handiwork.

“Good thinking,” he praised and his face softened at her proud smile. “You ready?”

“Wait.” Digging around in her jean’s pocket, Kagome withdrew a hairband and using only one hand, she tried to gather her hair and pull it up into a haphazard ponytail. “I don’t want it flying in my face and hindering my sight.”

Inuyasha watched, slightly amused, as she tried and failed to gather up her mass of thick raven hair to secure it together before finally taking pity with a sigh and moving behind her.

“Give it here,” he mumbled, batting her hand away and wiggling his fingers for the band. Sheepishly and with a grumble she handed it over and he slipped it around his wrist before combing his claws through her hair in an attempt to get some of the tangles out.

Kagome figured he’d just shove it all up into a ponytail liked she’d originally planned, so when she felt him divide it into sections and begin to plait it, she blinked in surprise and couldn’t stop the pleased smile from curling her lips upward.

“I didn’t peg you for someone who knew how to braid,” she said, only half-teasingly.

“Used to have long hair,” Inuyasha grunted, eyes focused on his task. “Before it all went down. While I wasn’t an instructor at S and S, occasionally I gave demonstrations for the lessons and I learned to braid to keep it out of my face. Then shit hit the fan and it was just easier to chop it all off then to continue braiding it.”

Kagome made a sound of acknowledgement as he took the band around his wrist and twisted it around the end of the thick braid he’d created. It definitely wasn’t the best since he was a little out of practice, but it would hold together and that’s what mattered, he supposed. Especially since she was going to be in front of him and not behind him on the AVT. He didn’t want her hair in his face and impeding his own sight.

“There,” he rumbled and gave her hair a soft tug. “You’re all set. Ready to go?”

Running her hand down the length of her new braid, Kagome beamed at him over her shoulder and nodded.

“Ready.”

He led her over to the door and wrapped an arm around her waist, tugging her in front of him. Inuyasha glared down at her, eyes drilling into her own.

“_Exactly. As. I. Say._ Capeesh?”

Kagome rolled her eyes but nodded. “Yes, Inuyasha, I will do exactly as you say. I promise.”

Grumbling under his breath, and hoping he wasn’t making a grave mistake, Inuyasha tightened his hold around her and launched them both up into the storage room, ignoring her squeak of surprise and the way her arm snapped around his neck. He landed softly on his feet, released her, and gestured her to follow with a jerk of his head before heading toward the loading docks.

Kagome dutifully followed behind, quickening her steps to catch up to him and for the first time noticing the dried blood that stained the concrete floor. She blanched and forced her eyes up, landing on Inuyasha’s board back in front of her. She was going to have to get used to that, she realized; all the blood and other unpleasantness that accompanied death.

Kagome valiantly hoped she’d be able to stomach it.

Inuyasha was waiting for her at a metal door beside the closed truck bay doors and Kagome frowned when she reached them.

“Wait, if this place has a back door, why do you need the one on the roof?”

“The roof door is plan B if this exit gets compromised,” Inuyasha answered lowly, cracking open the door and peering outside. He’d checked beforehand, but it was always better to err on the side of caution. “Also some of the others are human and can’t jump like me, so this is their primary entrance and exit. I just use the roof door because it’s faster and easier.”

She blinked. “Oh.” Well, that made sense.

“It’s clear,” he rumbled and shot a look at her over his shoulder. “ATV’s just outside. You good?”

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Kagome nodded and took a step closer, trying to calm her nerves. Perhaps it _would_ have been a better idea if she’d stayed behind...

Easily sensing her distress, Inuyasha frowned and hedged, “If you wanna head back...”

Kagome closed her eyes, deliberated, and shook her head. “No,” she mumbled. “No, I—I’m okay. Let’s go.”

He still looked like he didn’t believe her, but thankfully didn’t make her go back, so Kagome counted it as a small victory. She waited for him to open the door, but when he continued to stand there and frown at her, Kagome raised her brows in wordless inquiry.

Inuyasha sighed, made a face, and thrust a hand through his short hair. “One more thing.”

Kagome resisted the urge to groan, however she did roll her eyes. “Inuyasha—”

“Just shut up and listen. I wouldn’t say anything if it wasn’t important.”

Rolling her eyes again, Kagome gestured for him to continue with a wave of her hand and went to cross her arms, belatedly remembered she couldn’t, so settled for propping her hand on her hips as she waited for him to say whatever he thought was important.

“Look, since the world has gone to shit, who you are, your identity, is pretty much the only thing you have left that you can really call yours anymore,” Inuyasha began, not bothering to beat around the bush. “It’s _extremely_ important that you protect it at all times when you’re not around those you trust.”

Kagome’s brow furrowed. “Who can’t I trust?”

Even as she said it, Kagome wanted to kick herself. She’d already made the stupid mistake to trust somebody right off the bat and ended up with a freaking bullet in her shoulder. So basically, trust no one but Inuyasha.

“Anyone that’s not me or the others,” Inuyasha replied, confirming her thoughts. “I know you haven’t met them, but I can vouch for them. It’s dangerous out there, Kagome, and I’m not just talking about the undead. Just because you don’t see anything doesn’t mean it’s safe; demons are excellent at concealing their presence and like to eavesdrop. I’ve also run into a few murder-happy whackjobs that masquerade as a deadie to get close before springing a surprise attack you aren’t expecting coming from something that’s not supposed to have any higher brain function.”

Kagome’s mouth dropped in astonishment and he grinned wryly.

“Yeah. I know. So you have to constantly be on your guard, because if someone knows who you are, who you _really_ are, they will take everything you hold dear to you and use it against you. Family, friends, a lover—anything they can think of.”

She could feel the color draining out of her face as her eyes went very wide. “B-but...my family...I don’t even know—”

“It doesn’t matter,” Inuyasha cut her off, his voice uncharacteristically gentle. “Evil things have resources we don’t. They aren’t afraid to play dirty to get what they want, use tricks, blackmail, and bribery to obtain otherwise unknown information. Never underestimate your enemy because it could mean your death.”

Kagome gasped and Inuyasha grimaced, but he didn’t take it back. “I don’t mean to scare you,” he rumbled, lifting his hand to rub her arm soothingly. “I just wanna prepare you. Do you understand? Why you can’t reveal your name or who you are?”

Swallowing the sudden lump in her throat that was making it a tad harder to breath, Kagome nodded.

Inuyasha didn’t like how pale she looked, but continued anyway.

“Alright. One more thing: when we’re out there, you can’t call me Inuyasha. I’m Ash outside these walls. Likewise I won’t call you Kagome, and I don’t have a name for you yet, but it doesn’t matter right now. Everyone at the dojo has an alias too, and we use them while radioing as well. The channels aren’t secure and anyone could be listening in so better to be safe than sorry.”

Inuyasha gave her a minute to digest everything and watched her face carefully, really hoping that it wouldn’t dissuade her from wanting to come back with him and learn how to protect herself. Probably he could have gone a little lighter on some of the details, but he needed her to understand the importance of what he was saying, stressing that a slip of the tongue could mean life or death.

And maybe he should have been alarmed that it hadn’t even been a full twenty-four hours and she was already growing on him, but he didn’t allow himself to dwell on that for long. Kagome was still staring up at him with wide cinnamon eyes, clearly trying to come to terms with this new information, and he opened his mouth to tell her that maybe it wouldn’t be a good idea for her to go with him after all if she was still shaken.

But then she blinked, took a deep breath, and her expression cleared before she gave a curt nod.

“Okay,” she breathed, locking gazes with him. “Yes. I understand. I’ll...be careful, be on my guard and vigilant. Trust no one but you and your friends. Assume nowhere is safe. I got it.”

Relaxing slightly, relieved she was taking this seriously, Inuyasha asked, “What’s my name?”

Her lips twitched. “Ash.”

Finally he allowed a small grin to surface and he nodded in approval. “Good. I don’t think you’ll have to use it since you won’t be out of my sight, but again, better to be safe.”

Kagome nodded and giving her shoulder a squeeze, Inuyasha finally opened the door the rest of the way and gestured for her to go first. Kagome slipped outside and he followed, closing it softly behind him. He walked over to a dirty forest-green four-wheeler just a few paces away with a small utility trailer attached behind it holding the trash bags.

“You’ll be sitting in front of me,” he told her, eyeing a few scattered roamers that were too far away to notice them. “I don’t like that you only have one hand to hold on, so being in front will—what?”

Frozen to the spot just before the door, Kagome wasn’t looking at him but somewhere in the distance, her pale face stricken and dark eyes wide. He followed her gaze and cursed. She’d noticed them too, the undead wandering aimlessly around, unaware of them – for now – and he hoped it stayed that way.

Walking back over to her, Inuyasha put himself in front of her, blocking her view of them, and took her shoulders in his hands. Kagome started, gasping as her gaze flew up to his, and he frowned at her pale face and wide eyes.

“Don’t look at them,” he murmured and gently guided her over to the four-wheeler. “Don’t pay them any attention. They haven’t noticed us yet, and even if they do, they’re far enough away where we can easily outrun them. They’re slow as hell and we have a four-wheeler and guns. I’ll keep you safe. I promise. Just trust me, alright?”

Willing her heartbeat to calm and her trembling to stop, Kagome closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, her good hand fisting in his shirt. Inuyasha kept an eye on the undead until she regained her composure and was glad when just a few seconds later she relaxed and released a shaky sigh.

“Okay,” she breathed, nodding once. “Okay. I’m sorry, I just—”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, shaking his head. “I get it. Now c’mon, before they see us. You first. I’ll sit behind you to keep you from falling, and it’ll make me feel a little better because I can see you, besides.”

Something warm bloomed in Kagome’s chest at that and she hid her smile by quickly turning and climbing aboard the ATV, swinging her leg over and settling in the cracked leather seat. Inuyasha swung up behind her and she blushed at having him so close, his chest pressing against her back, and she tried to regulate her breathing so she didn’t have to answer any awkward questions. She succeeded for the most part and now only had to worry about her red face.

“Good?” he rumbled in her ear, trying very hard to ignore how nice it felt to have her pressed against his chest, his thighs cradling her small form and her scent in his nose.

“Yes,” Kagome squeaked and satisfied, he leaned forward, turned the key, and shifted into drive.

“Hang on,” he growled and eased up on the throttle, feeling Kagome tense against him and her hand fist in his jeans as they took off.

Keeping half of his attention on where they were going so he didn’t end up running over something dead and end up showering both in blood and guts, Inuyasha kept the other half of his attention trained on the woman in front of him. Pressed so closely against him, he could feel how tense she was and a quick glance at the small hand fisted tightly in his jeans at his thigh revealed a white knuckled grip. Unsurprisingly the bitter smell of fear stung his nose, but it was a trace amount, a minor footnote in the natural pleasantness of her scent that he’d already become accustomed to. It was clear she hadn’t bathed in a while – in all truthfulness neither had he – but it did absolutely nothing to take away from pleasing aroma teasing his nose, and anyway Inuyasha always preferred a woman’s natural scent rather than that perfume shit.

Inuyasha blinked and shook his head when he realized where his thoughts were straying. Preferred? He didn’t _prefer_ anything, and sure, Kagome smelled nice, and yeah, maybe her scent _was_ ten times better to take in than the stench of decay and death, but it didn’t _mean_ anything. And _fine_, she was attractive. So _what? _He was a healthy adult male with a pair of working eyes; of course he’d noticed her slim figure, her perfect legs, shapely hips, and decent rack. He’d have to be blind to not see how damned beautiful she was with big brown eyes that reflected her soul, luscious raven hair that was a stark contrast to the pale smoothness of her skin, and full, pink lips that he just knew would be soft against his own—

Inuyasha cursed and jerked the handles hard to avoid mowing over a deadie that had wandered into his path. Kagome emitted a soft cry of alarm and shoved herself back hard against him and abruptly he decided that that was enough thinking for the day. Because clearly thinking was dangerous when he was around a certain dark-haired woman and so forcing himself to focus on the task at hand so he didn’t make the same mistake twice – Kagome was already a nervous wreck; she didn’t need him killing them by way of ATV accident – Inuyasha muttered an apology and stole a quick look at her to see how she was faring.

White as a ghost and clutching his wrist now instead of his jeans, Kagome’s concentration was centered on the roamers that they passed as he maneuvered through them, anxiously darting amongst them as she bit down hard on her lip. It was clear she didn’t like being so close to them, but it couldn’t be helped; this was the fastest way to the pit, and he couldn’t take the street because that’s where most of them congregated.

Inuyasha hated to admit that the more time passed, the smarter the damned things seemed to get. They learned, they adapted, and more and more Inuyasha found that he had to use wit to fight his way through rather than brute strength alone. It was astounding, especially since they were nothing more than a rotting meat suit of never ending hunger, but it was apparent they retained enough of their previous cognitive functions to understand roads were a good source of flesh.

It was bizarre and absolutely fucking terrifying, if Inuyasha were being honest.

Kagome emitted a stifled whimper when he dodged yet another roamer and Inuyasha resolved to distract her with the first thing that came to his mind.

“What do you know about ‘em?” he asked, bending his head to be heard over the wind in their ears.

Kagome started at suddenly having his voice in her ear and she turned her head to shoot him a wide-eyed glance of confusion.

“T-them?” she squeaked.

He jerked his head, gesturing to the roamers that reached out to them as they whizzed by. He hadn’t failed to notice either that more were trailing behind them, attracted to the noise of the AVT. That noise meant food and once again Inuyasha cursed the fucking rotters.

Kagome blinked at the question but thankfully it seemed to do the trick, her brow furrowing as she gathered her thoughts. She hadn’t noticed the increasing group stumbling after them yet and Inuyasha was grateful for that. They wouldn’t have time to catch up to them anyway, so at the moment, they didn’t warrant his concern.

“Just that they’re freakishly strong and they can smell us. Or our blood, or something,” Kagome answered.

Inuyasha nodded, unsurprised. That was about the extent of what he knew when everything went south.

“They won’t die unless you get ‘em in the head,” he tacked on as the pit came into view ahead. “Kill the brain, kill the zombie. They don’t get winded or tired, but they’re slow. Noise attracts them; screaming, gunfire, explosives, things like that. For some fucking reason they have hearing as well as any demon’s so even the sound of someone running will grab their attention. They’re drawn to warmth, so if you’re out of options, set something on fire and fucking run. They can’t climb as far as I know, so anywhere up high is a safe bet. If there’s a ladder, knock it down.”

Though looking slightly ill, Kagome nodded and he knew she’d remember everything. He smiled grimly. He wished he could spare her all of this, but the truth of the matter was, it was unavoidable if she wanted to survive.

And Inuyasha _really_ wanted her to survive.

“We’re here,” Inuyasha rumbled in her ear and Kagome looked ahead to find they were entering what looked to be a construction site.

Abandoned utility vehicles, bulldozers, and a large pile of steel beams were some of the things Kagome spotted as Inuyasha maneuvered the four-wheeler toward a sizeable dip in the ground. Kagome suspected some sort of building or large structure had been in the making when the end of the world came about and unsurprisingly, just like literally everywhere else, bodies littered the ground, old blood staining the dirt and the smell was enough to make Kagome gag.

Hastily she covered her mouth and held her breath while Inuyasha merely clenched his jaw and tried very hard not to breathe it in.

“We won’t be here long,” he told her through gritted teeth, ears flicking forward when familiar groaning sounds floated up to him. “Try and bare it—ah, _fuck_.”

Kagome felt the bottom drop out of her stomach as her eyes widened and her blood turned to ice.

Fuck, indeed.

Somebody had very recently dumped numerous dead bodies into the large hollow and a number of undead were feasting on them.

“Shit,” Inuyasha swore again and he could feel Kagome start to tremble as several of them noticed the arrival of fresh meat and warm blood. They started stumbling toward them up the slight incline and once more Inuyasha swore colorfully under his breath.

“In—Ash,” she whimpered, head whipping around as more roamers encroached. Oh god, they were everywhere!

Heaving a sigh – dammit, this was _supposed_ to a simple trash dump with no incident – Inuyasha wordlessly climbed off behind her and intercepted Kagome’s panicked look with a reassuring one of his own.

“Calm down,” he murmured and slid the combat knife out of its sheath. “Nothing I can’t handle. Here.” He took her hand and slid the handle into her hand. “You won’t need it, but just in case. In the head. _Hard_.”

Automatically Kagome wrapped her fingers around the weapon but her gaze remained on him, her eyes impossibly wide and the fear a hard knot that was slowly working its way up into her throat, suffocating her.

“B-but—Ash—please—”

Grimacing, Inuyasha forced himself to turn away and slid Tessaiga from its scabbard in one fluid movement. The blade transformed in a brilliant flash of light and then with nary a word he slid down the incline and neatly hacked off the heads of the deadies coming toward him.

With a death grip on the knife in her hand, Kagome watched in a sort of morbid fascination as Inuyasha sliced and diced, cleaving through rotting bodies and spilling rancid blood. He was calm, not an ounce of fear or distress as he almost casually strolled around and stabbed a few more in the head, silencing grating moans.

In what seemed like no time at all he was climbing back out, his sword dripping blood but miraculously not even a single drop stained his clothes or skin.

Okay. Kagome could admit: she was impressed.

Flicking the blood off, Inuyasha dropped Tessaiga back into its scabbard and strolled by to grab the trash bags in the trailer. Kagome gawked at him, wondering how he could be so nonchalant about the whole thing. Didn’t he realize how unreal that was? How amazing he was? There must have been at least ten of them and he’d dispatched every one without batting an eye!

Inuyasha tossed in the garbage, turned around, and gave Kagome a cursory glance before shifting his gaze behind her to the dead figures that were getting closer with every second. Making up his mind, he started toward them, ignoring Kagome’s alarmed cry of his name. Using his speed to his advantage, he zipped between each one and drew his claws through decaying flesh, hacking off heads and outright tearing some of them off when a few managed to catch him off guard.

The whole thing lasted only about a minute and he was dismayed to realize he hadn’t gotten away from staining his clothes that time. He scowled down at the dots of dark red on his jeans before snatching up a random head that was still clicking its jaws at him and wandered back over to Kagome.

She looked absolutely horrified as he stopped beside her and tossed the head onto the ground.

“C’mere,” he said, waving his hand and gesturing her over.

Kagome turned her wide-eyed gaze to him. “Why? What are you gonna do with that?”

He rolled his eyes. “Just get over here already.”

She hesitated, biting her lip as she stared between the moaning head – _gross_ – and him as she deliberated on whether or not to do as he said but then finally gave in with a grimace when Inuyasha pegged her with an impatient glare. Mindful of her arm, she scooted off the four-wheeler and shuffled over to him, looking very uncertain and casting nervous glances at the head as if it would suddenly grow legs and leap at her.

When she reached him, Inuyasha crossed his arms and nodded to the lump of flesh on the ground.

“Kill it.”

Her mouth dropped. “W-what?” she squeaked, aghast.

Inuyasha returned her incredulous stare with an unwavering one of his own. “I want you to get a feel for the kind of force that’s needed to penetrate through the skull to get to the brain. Use the knife and stab it as hard as you can.”

Fervently Kagome began shaking her head. “A-Ash, no, I can’t—”

“You can,” Inuyasha interrupted firmly, “and you _will_. Would you rather I get one with the body still attached? I can assure you it won’t be nearly as easy.”

She blanched at the thought.

“No,” she grumbled, wrinkling her nose.

“Then c’mon,” he urged and jerked his head toward the dead eyes and snapping jaws on the ground. “You said you wanted to learn. Back it up and show me.”

Kagome shot him a look but when all he did was raise his eyebrows at her, she sighed and begrudgingly knelt down beside it.

Five feet away.

“Ya gotta get closer than that, babe,” Inuyasha drawled and Kagome huffed before slowly inching her way closer, knife clutched in her shaking hand. She eyed the head, grimacing at the blood that oozed from the neck and the loose flaps of skin that hung off the face, revealing the torn muscle beneath.

Inuyasha caught a glimpse of her face and grinned. “Yeah, it ain’t pretty,” he agreed. “But it’s harmless. Just stay clear of the mouth and you’re good. Try to get it in one; multiple stabs tend to get messy.”

“I’m gonna be sick,” Kagome whimpered but nonetheless poised the business end of the knife above it. Teeth clicked and snapped, gurgled sounds emitting from the mangled throat that Kagome tried very hard to ignore.

“Get a good grip,” her half-demon teacher instructed, voice low. “Don’t want your hand slipping and getting close to the mouth.”

Kagome tightened her hand and swallowed thickly before taking a deep, bracing breath. She could do this. She could _do_ this.

Face screwing up in determination, Kagome grit her teeth, raised her hand, and jabbed viciously down.

The knife went about halfway into the right side of forehead and blood welled up around the ebony blade. But it must not have been deep or hard enough because it was still making those awful gurgling sounds and with a low moan, Kagome jerked to the side and threw up the Poptart she’d had for breakfast.

She felt something warm land on her back, rubbing up and down, and her face burned with shame. God, she was so pathetic. How did she ever think she could do this? She was weak, a failure, surely Inuyasha didn’t want to waste his time on someone so pathetic—

“It was a good first try,” he told her and reached out with his free hand to jerk the knife free. “A little harder and you would have had it. You okay to try again? We can call it a day and try again tomorrow if you want. We got time to kill.”

Spitting a few times and using her shirt to wipe her mouth, Kagome sat back and turned wide eyes his way, a little stunned with how patient he was being. He didn’t sound or even look disappointed, amber eyes regarding her steadily without a hint of judgment.

“Why are you so...understanding?” she asked, shaking her head. “I thought you’d be...I don’t know, annoyed, or something, because I’m...well, weak.”

Inuyasha sighed. “Everyone has to start somewhere, K—uh, kitten,” he said, coming up with the name on the fly and finding he sort of liked it. “You think I was as good as I am now right off the bat?” He snorted. “Hell no. I didn’t have anybody to teach me when shit hit the fan so I had to teach _myself_ through trial and error how to kill these assholes. But I learned from my mistakes, got stronger, and yeah it was hard at first, but when you’re fighting for your life, you get over it quickly.

“It’s only the first day,” he told her, grabbing her braid and giving it a gentle tug. “Don’t be so hard on yourself. You’ll get there, I promise. After all, you have _me_ showing you the ropes. It’s a guaranteed success.”

He grinned arrogantly at her and Kagome let loose a watery laugh. His words actually did make her feel a little better. He was right; of course she’d fumble and make mistakes during the first try. She had literally zero experience, but now she had a general idea of how hard she had to jab down, so perhaps she was jumping the gun a bit.

She wasn’t weak. She _could_ do this.

She _will_.

Offering a genuine smile and straightening her back, Kagome nodded and steeled herself.

“Again.”

With a smirk, Inuyasha handed over the knife and watched with no small amount of pride as Kagome sucked in a breath, poised the knife once more above the head, and drove the entire blade home.

He was surprised, but happy to oblige when she requested she get the other gurgling heads and one by one Kagome silenced the bleeding craniums. With each one it became easier and easier until, by head number twelve, there was zero hesitation as she raised the blade and drove it into the temple in one smooth jab.

Even the puddle of blood she was kneeling in wasn’t enough to stop the proud grin from spreading across her face, brown eyes bright and exuberant as she gazed up at a smirking Inuyasha standing next to her, arms crossed and the approval evident on his face.

Kagome was covered in blood, her left shoulder and arm were screaming at her, and her right arm was sore from overuse, but she didn’t care about any of that as Inuyasha drove them back to the store. Unpredictably deadies chased after them with their slow stumble but that didn’t bother her either now that she knew she had what it took. There was a new confidence instilled in her, a hidden reserve a strength Kagome wasn’t even aware she had, and it was all thanks for the half-demon pressed against her back, strong arms bracketing her body, keeping her safe, and didn’t _that_ give her all the warm and fuzzies.

Inuyasha parked by the back door and after Kagome climbed off, he moved the AVT into a hidden alcove she hadn’t noticed before. Obscured by a large green dumpster and gray tarp that had several holes in it, at first glance it looked like just a heap of garbage from all the trash bags around it and Kagome had to admit it was rather clever. She waited for him at the door and together they headed inside.

Kagome was still on cloud nine as they descended into the basement, unable to wipe the smile off of her face. Inuyasha merely shook his head and rooted around in his box of clothes for something for her to wear since her jeans were ruined. He found a pair of jersey shorts, shrugged, and tossed them at her, saying something about heading back up to check if anything had happened in their absence to give her privacy to change.

Inuyasha disappeared and as fast as she could considering she only had one arm, she peeled herself out of her ruined jeans with some difficulty and muttered a curse as her shoulder protested. She was tying the drawstring of the shorts into a knot when Inuyasha returned and sitting on the bed, she watched him shrug off the shotgun on his back and put it back onto the shelf before setting both blades, his sword and the knife, onto the table to be cleaned.

The rest of the day was blessedly free of anymore zombie stabbing, much to Kagome’s relief, and the two passed the time in a mixture of idle chatter, Kagome’s endless questions about his friends, Inuyasha’s exasperated replies, and several demonstrations on how to take apart, clean, and load the Glock. Inuyasha managed to convince Kagome to stay behind when he left to do a quick perimeter check, but only after promising her that he’d only be gone for ten minutes and would come straight back. She was an anxious mess, but when he returned eight minutes later, the brilliant and relieved smile she gave him had the sarcastic retort on his lips instantly dying.

When Kagome went to bed that night, lying on her side and drowsily watching Inuyasha doze comfortably in the recliner not too far from her, she randomly remembered what the half-demon had called her earlier that day and she smiled.

Her last thought before drifting off to sleep was, _Kitten, huh...?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Fun fact:** For those of you who are fans of The Walking Dead or watch the show, I _swear_ to you that I wrote this chapter _weeks_ before I saw the episode in season 9 when the Whisperers were introduced 😂 Honest to God I had _no_ idea the Skins/Whisperers were an actual thing when I wrote about the part where Inuyasha is explaining to Kagome about the people who disguise themselves as zombies and attack people lmao


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy new years, darlings. <3

The following days were spent in a mixture of more random small talk, light banter – Inuyasha was quick to discover that Kagome was fucking _feisty_ when riled up, and likewise Kagome learned the half-demon had a wit that nearly matched her own – and some light weapons maintenance training. Kagome sometimes went with Inuyasha when he had to leave for some reason or another, whether it be searching for supplies, killing some nuisance deadies (helpfully stabbing some that Inuyasha felled), or inspecting the store for any security breaches or evidence of any unknown presence. Most of the time, however, she stayed behind, letting her shoulder heal and doing her part to keep the space tidy.

Kagome was able to recognize the voices that came out of the radio whenever Inuyasha talked with one of his friends. Most of the time it was the ones called Slayer and Monk, though sometimes a voice that went by Cane came through. Those conversations were always interesting; it seemed that Inuyasha didn’t exactly get along with this Cane guy and they were constantly tossing insults at each other. Kagome suspected they were both purposely trying to piss the other off and while strange – and if she were being honest, somewhat childish – it was also highly amusing.

It was after a particular conversation between him and Monk in which they discussed a rogue and the issue of trusting them with a fawn (??) that Kagome had asked why had had given his real name when he met her and not his alias. Inuyasha had seemed surprised at first, but then he’d shrugged and simply said he’d needed to get her to trust him. Doubtful she would if he’d lied right off the bat and given her a false name.

She’d digested that in silence, though the smile on her face suggested she appreciated that he had, in fact, been true with her from the start.

It was getting easier to be alone now, for which she was grateful, and while she still felt some lingering anxiety whenever she paid too much attention to how long he’d been gone, it was easily manageable. To pass the time, she played cards with an old deck she’d found while sneakily nosing through the stuff Inuyasha had collected over the months. A lot of the time whenever he returned during one of her games, he’d sit down and join her and they’d have the rowdiest, loudest games of Bullshit ever.

It was tons of fun though despite it being just the two of them, and more often than not Kagome was left gasping for breath from laughing too hard.

It was the day before two of Inuyasha’s friends were supposed to show up to take over watching the store and Kagome was in the middle of a rather boring game of Solitaire when the radio crackled to life. So used to the silence of the basement during Inuyasha’s absences, she jumped in her seat with a startled gasp and snapped her gaze to stare at the device where it sat on the table in front of her.

_“Ash, come in.”_

She blinked. _Slayer,_ she thought, recognizing the feminine voice. Kagome’s brow furrowed slightly; the woman had sounded slightly out of breath and a tad harried. Was everything okay?

_“Ash, do you read?”_ Slayer’s voice came over again and Kagome detected a smidge of impatience.

She bit her lip and glanced at the ceiling door. Inuyasha had been gone for about forty-five minutes and was due back in another fifteen, however it was always unpredictable when his exact arrival would be.

“_Dammit, Ash—”_ Slayer cut herself off with a grunt and Kagome’s frown deepened as she stared thoughtfully at the two-way. That hadn’t sounded very good at all... 

_“Come back or so help me god I’ll feed all your precious ramen to the stupid zombies!”_

Kagome’s eyebrows rose at the rather...unique threat and her lips twitched. Over the past few days she had also learned of Inuyasha’s fervent love – or maybe obsession was a more accurate term – for the noodles and had he been around to hear it she was fairly certain that particular threat would get his ass in gear. The man liked his ramen.

A few more seconds ticked by and the device remained silent. Kagome watched it for another five seconds before shrugging and going back to her game, figuring Slayer must have realized Inuyasha wasn’t around. Putting the five of hearts on top of the six of spades, Kagome idly wondered what had happened and hoped that it was nothing bad—

** _“Answer me right now, you goddamn prick!”_ **

The shriek coming from the tiny speaker startled Kagome so badly she nearly fell out of her chair and with a gasp, she didn’t think as she reached over and snatched up the radio.

“Uh, er, h-hello?” Kagome spoke into the mic, wincing at how uncertain she sounded.

She received no response and she bit her lip before continuing a little more bravely, “Um, Slayer, right? I’m sorry, Ash isn’t around right now, but I can pass along a message if you’d like?”

She released the switch and waited anxiously, hoping the woman wouldn’t be mad that she’d answered and not the half-demon. A few seconds later the two-way crackled to life and Slayer’s voice, much more composed, came through.

_“Hi,”_ she said amiably and Kagome relaxed. _“You must be that woman Ash has told us about. Uh, yeah, I’m Slayer.”_ She gave a nervous laugh. _“I’m sorry you had to hear that...usually he picks up right away so I thought he was deliberately ignoring me. He’s done it before, usually when he’s in a mood.”_

Kagome could practically hear the other woman’s eyes rolling and she couldn’t stifle the snicker that bubbled up. “I’ve only known him for a few days, but I know exactly what you mean.”

_“I think we’ll get along just fine,”_ Slayer replied and Kagome could hear the smile in her voice. _“Listen, I don’t mean to be rude, but I need to go. I did have a reason for contacting him and it’s kinda urgent, so could you please tell him to contact me when he gets back?”_

“Of course,” Kagome returned without hesitation, frown back in place. She wanted to ask if everything was okay, but knew it wasn’t her place yet so she refrained. “He should be back in about ten minutes or so. I’ll let him know right away.”

_“Thank you,”_ Slayer said, relief evident in her voice, but there was also an edge to it that was more than a little concerning. _“It was nice meeting you...sorta.” _A soft laugh floated from the speaker and Kagome echoed it.

“Ditto,” she said and the radio fell silent once more.

Worrying her bottom lip again, Kagome set the two-way on the table and sighed, staring down at the cards on the table. She’d scattered them slightly when she’d been startled from the radio suddenly coming to life so she started gathering them into a pile and stacking them back to replace into the ripped cardboard box.

She had just decided to get in a little PT for her shoulder when the ceiling hatch flipped open and Inuyasha dropped inside with a grunt. His shirt was bloody, which meant he’d had to utilize the sword at his hip – Tessaiga, if she recalled correctly – and Kagome hoped whatever he’d had to cut down was already dead.

She tipped him a smile and sat down on the bed. “Hi.”

He flicked her a glance, grunted, and promptly shed his shirt, unceremoniously dropping it to the floor before digging around for a clean one.

Kagome’s face flamed and though she told herself to look away, her eyes took in his muscled back with unveiled appreciation, catching a glimpse of his chest as he straightened to pull a t-shirt over his head. Hastily she looked away and desperately hoped he hadn’t caught her checking him out. Good lord, but the man was ripped.

“Um, Slayer needs to talk to you,” Kagome said. “She sounded a little weird, so I answered her back on the radio. She said it was urgent.”

Inuyasha frowned and picked up the two-way. “Weird, how?”

Kagome shook her head. “Like she was out of breath and, I don’t know...agitated?”

Nodding, not really liking the sound of that, Inuyasha depressed the switch and spoke into the mic, “Ash to Slayer, come in.”

Her reply was immediate. _“Took your sweet time,”_ she quipped.

He rolled his eyes. “What happened? You said it was urgent.”

Never one to beat around the bush, Sango cut right to the chase. _“Monk’s hurt,”_ she said and even Kagome could pick up on the concern in her voice. _“We ran into a group of people that threatened to kill us if we didn’t hand over our weapons and supplies and Monk got a cut in his arm that I think needs stitches.”_

“So why don’t you—”

_“We ran out last week, Ash,”_ she cut him off, sounding impatient. _“Remember? Because Cane is a fucking idiot and used the last of it so he didn’t bleed out after that stupid stunt he pulled?”_

Inuyasha cursed because yeah, he remembered. “Fucking wolf,” he muttered.

_“Besides,”_ Slayer continued, voice soft. “_You’re the only one I trust to do it right. It’s Monk, Ash.”_

Inuyasha closed his eyes and sighed, thrusting a hand through his hair. “Yeah,” he rumbled, grimacing. “I know. Alright, fine, but Thing One and Two are gonna hafta—”

_“They’re already on their way,”_ she interrupted and the relieved gratitude in her voice was unmistakable. _“Left about fifteen minutes ago.”_

“Copy. See you soon.”

_“Back atcha.”_

Inuyasha stared thoughtfully down at the two-way radio for a moment before shaking his head and placing it back on the dock to charge. Ginta and Hakkaku, otherwise known as Thing One and Thing Two, were the biggest scatterbrains he knew and often forgot to put it back on the dock to charge at the end of the night. At least now it would have a halfway decent charge before they carted it around everywhere.

“Looks like you’ll be meeting everyone a day early,” he said as he turned back around, one hand on his hip while the other racked through his hair. When all Kagome did was toss him a distracted smile before adopting her look of pensive concern again, Inuyasha frowned and then crossed his arms.

“What is it?” he asked. He’d gotten to know the young woman pretty well in the past few days and he could tell something was bothering her now.

Her eyes flashed to his at the question and she worried her bottom lip. He cocked a brow, wondering what it could possibly be to make her this hesitant, then she sighed and really, he should have expected what came out of her mouth next.

“Those people,” Kagome began quietly, her gaze searching his, but for what he didn’t know, “that...Slayer was talking about, who wanted their weapons. Did...were they...killed?”

Kagome didn’t fail to notice the way Inuyasha visibly tensed, and when all he did was clench his jaw and harden his stare, she had her answer.

**-X-**

“So,” Kagome said some twenty minutes later and tilted her head, giving him a sidelong glance as her lips twitched. “Thing One and Two?”

From where he stood by the edge of the shop’s roof, keeping a lookout for a huge black truck and straining his ears for the sound of a diesel engine, Inuyasha glanced to his right and studied the profile of the woman that stood beside him. His gaze met hers for an instant before she looked away, back toward the deadened land that surrounded them and the even deader figures that wandered it. A few of them dotted the landscape here and there, but not enough to be a concern, so they more or less went ignored.

Inuyasha’s brows dipped into a slight frown. He knew it was still bothering her. She tried to hide it behind vague smiles and forced laughter, but he could see the strain around her eyes, the way she unconsciously worried her lip and seemed to lose herself in thought. He didn’t like that she was so obviously troubled by this, and several times now he had to stop himself from reassuring her or spewing out complete bullshit just to see a genuine smile on her face again.

Because the fact of the matter was, anything he could say wouldn’t make a damn bit of difference because this was something she had to work out by herself. He knew she didn’t relish the thought of killing someone in cold blood – hell, he was willing to bet his ramen stash she was the type of person who caught insects in her house and released them back outside – but unfortunately, that was the way of the world now. You had to kill in order to survive and she was just going to have to accept that on her own terms, no matter how harsh it sounded.

Inuyasha knew she would. Kagome was strong; maybe not in body, but definitely in will and heart, and he was confident she would come around in time. And until that time finally came around, Inuyasha would be there to protect her and offer his assistance whenever necessary.

“You’ll understand when you meet them,” he finally answered, lifting a brow. “Otherwise they’re known as Smokey and Bandit.”

Kagome actually did a double take at that and her mouth dropped slightly.

“Yeah,” Inuyasha muttered, knowing exactly what she was thinking. “I know. And yes, it was deliberate. I swear to God they’re joined at the hip. Not once in the entire time I’ve known them have I ever seen them apart. Also they’re bona fide idiots.”

“Don’t be rude.”

He shrugged, unapologetic. “You’ll see,” he said and the distant rumble of a diesel engine had him turning his gaze back to the road.

Not ten seconds later he spotted the familiar black dually weaving between the abandoned vehicles on the road, the twin silver stacks rising up on either side of the cab clearly visible. The truck was lifted and altogether a motherfucking powerhouse and Inuyasha loved the thing. His own vehicle had been stolen long ago when everything started but it wasn’t a huge loss; the sedan had been on its last legs anyway and he wasn’t sorry to see it go.

_This_ monster, however, Inuyasha had pretty much claimed as his own, everybody knew it, and he’s not going to lie: he was going be fucking devastated if something happened to it. He considered it a bonus that it was a zombie killing machine and _hell_ yeah it was fun mowing them down with the modified grill he’d fashioned himself. Reminiscent of a pilot that was usually found on trains, the heavy steel frame easily cleared anything in front of it and it was arguably the best idea he’d ever had.

While Inuyasha raised a hand and waved, gesturing for them to drive around back to the loading dock, Kagome came up beside him and gawked at the six-wheeled monstrosity.

Inuyasha caught the look on her face and grinned proudly.

“Beauty, ain’t she?” he boasted and watched as Hakkaku, in the passenger’s seat, threw him a thumbs up as Ginta turned the wheel to go around back.

“It’s huge,” Kagome mumbled, frowning. “Is it yours?”

“More or less,” he answered and gently took her elbow to guide her to the other side of the roof. “I found it shortly after my own car was stolen, cleaned it up, made it better, so as far as I’m considered it’s mine now. Doesn’t hurt that it’s a beast and a definite upgrade from what I had before.”

The two wolves were just backing up to the loading dock and hooking an arm around Kagome’s waist, Inuyasha murmured a word of warning before hopping down to the ground. Predictably the roar of the diesel truck had attracted a number of deadies and Inuyasha told her to stay put before unsheathing Tessaiga and getting to work.

And as always, Kagome watched in awe as the half-demon darted from zombie to zombie and she couldn’t help but think that he was truly a sight to behold as he swung that huge sword of his around. Bodies fell at an alarming rate and there wasn’t a hitch in his stride, zero hesitation as he cut down the undead with a practiced ease that was almost frightening.

“Pretty amazing, isn’t he?” a voice said to her right and Kagome managed to tear her gaze away from the half-demon to find one of the inhabitants of the truck standing beside her, his gray eyes friendly.

“Don’t tell anybody, but I’ve always thought Ash can give Cane a run for his money any day,” the wolf demon said with a mischievous grin and Kagome blinked in surprise.

“Don’t let _either_ of them hear you say that, or you’ll never hear the end of it!” another voice piped up and Kagome shifted her gaze to find wolf demon number two standing in the bed of the truck. The first thing she noticed about him was his blonde mohawk tipped with red and she thought the look suited him.

The one beside her, a tad shorter than she was with hair the same shade as his eyes and streaked with black, snickered and offered her another wide grin.

“Nah, he’s too busy showing off to hear,” he chortled and Kagome had to smile. “And Iris was bitching out Cane again when we left so doubtful he’d even care if he knew.”

“His face was so red!” Mohawk crowed as he hoped down from the bed and landed beside Gray Eyes.

“But from anger or shame, it was hard to tell!”

While the two men laughed at the expense of Cane, Kagome stood there staring between the two of them with a bewildered look on her face, not sure exactly what to say and wondering if they even remembered she was standing there. She suddenly understood why Inuyasha called them Thing One and Two.

And as if on cue, said half-demon sauntered over and barked, “Would you idiots knock it off and introduce yourselves already? Fuck’s sake, how that wolfshit puts up with you two I have no idea,” he muttered as he bypassed them and entered the backdoor to open the bay in order to load the truck.

As one the two wolf demons looked at each other, blinked, then broke into wide grins before abruptly spinning around to face her so fast Kagome took an involuntary step back.

“Our apologies, miss!” they said simultaneously and Kagome could do nothing but stand there and gape as together they took the same stance, legs akimbo with thumbs pointing at their chests, and plastered on matching, toothy grins.

“I’m Smokey, I have dimples!” the gray haired one said proudly.

“And I’m Bandit, the shrewd one!” Mohawk declared, then to Kagome’s utter bewilderment, they performed an odd sort of synchronized dance with fake fighting that reminded Kagome of a bad action film. They concluded it by striking what they probably assumed were power poses but in reality made them look ridiculous.

Well, _more_ ridiculous.

“And together, we’re Smokey and the Bandit!” they chorused and it was glaringly obvious they thought they’re little show was original and awe inspiring.

So of course Kagome, after getting over her shock, smiled brightly and clapped as they blushed and bowed.

“I have to admit,” she started, a teasing note to her voice, “I was a bit disappointed when you didn’t roll up in a black Trans Am, but that definitely made up for it.”

The duo stared at her for a beat of silence before abruptly losing their shit, jumping up and down, talking loudly over one another and basically just acting like rabid fangirls over the fact that Kagome understood the reference and where they’d gotten the names from. She stood there with a bemused smile on her face and inconspicuously inched toward the door where Inuyasha disappeared.

The truck bay door suddenly slid open, revealing Inuyasha in all of his scowling glory as he glared at the two idiots.

“You both need to shut the _hell_ up before you attract every goddamn roamer within a mile radius and I have to explain to Cane why you morons became zombie food while I stood by and watched. Now quit wasting time, make yourself useful and help me load the truck or so help me...”

He let the threat trail off with one last glower before turning and disappearing further into the backroom to gather supplies to take back to the dojo. Bandit grimaced and muttered an apology to Kagome before scampering after him while Smokey chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Uh, sorry,” Smokey apologized with a sheepish smile. “It’s not often we meet people who share our love for classic films. Heh.”

Kagome giggled and waved off his apology. “It’s fine,” she said. “It’s a good movie and one of my favorites. I have to ask, though, you do realize—”

“Smokey, get your ass over here before I barbecue it in molasses!” Inuyasha bellowed and Kagome snorted a laugh.

The wolf demon scrambled to obey, tossing Kagome one last smile before scurrying over and taking the box of canned food from Inuyasha’s arms to hand to Hakkaku, making a train.

About half an hour later the truck was loaded up, Ginta and Hakkaku were standing in front of the open bay door and waving them off as Inuyasha and Kagome drove off in the monster of a truck. Inuyasha had had to lift her up into it since her arm was still healing and she couldn’t heave herself up but he hadn’t seemed to mind and in fact did it before she’d even asked.

Leaning out the open window and smiling back at her new friends Smokey and Bandit, Kagome waved one last time then leaned back in her seat with a sigh. They were definitely interesting characters and meeting them made her wonder what his other friends were like. She was especially eager to meet Slayer; it’d be nice to have a girlfriend to chat with again and maybe she’d be able to get some more information about Inuyasha from her.

“I like them,” she announced, reaching up to grasp the handle above her head as they bumped over rough terrain and ran over debris that couldn’t be avoided. “Now I know why you call them Thing One and Two.”

She giggled as Inuyasha snorted, but the grin on his face told of his amusement.

“Told you,” he said and hit the button to put up Kagome’s window. Some of the roamers were a little too close for comfort and he didn’t want one of them reaching in.

“I do have to wonder, though...” Kagome suddenly said and Inuyasha flicked her a brief glance before looking forward again.

“What?” he rumbled, managing to squeeze the massive truck into an alley that led back to the main road. A few roamers were standing around in it, but the mounted pilot took care of them, effortlessly plowing them down and clearing the way.

Kagome tilted her head and tipped him a smile, brown eyes flashing impishly.

“They _do_ realize that Snowman was Bandit’s partner, and not Smokey the Sheriff?”

Inuyasha couldn’t stop the grin from spreading and he barked out a laugh.

“What we’re dealing with here,” he replied, shooting her a smirk as amber eyes glinted wickedly, “is a complete lack of respect for the law.”

Kagome threw her head back and laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a nod to one of my all-time favorite movies, Smokey and the Bandit. also that last line that Inuyasha says is a quote from the movie. Sheriff Buford T Justice, otherwise known as Smokey, says it to his (very dimwitted) son.


End file.
